Under the Light of the Shattered Moon
by Quatermass
Summary: Talon. A maverick group of fighters working under General Ironwood. One of their number is a wizard from another world. Now, shortly after a misadventure on Earth, Talon has another mission: to transfer to Beacon. But can Harry Potter, now head of Team HPIN, make a difference?
1. Foreword

**FOREWORD**

It's a funny old thing, isn't it? This was originally intended to be my first _RWBY_ crossover. But, well, I delayed while I intended to watch more of the series, and my first crossover became _Neopolitan and the Goblet of Fire_. Which was probably a better choice in the end. It didn't require as much prior knowledge of _RWBY_ , and it had a relatively novel plot by comparison (unleashing Neo, who was a female Harry, on Magical Britain).

This one isn't so novel. A lot of people have done 'Harry becoming a Hunter at the same time as Ruby, etc' stories, and it took some doing to find the right angle, especially as I had a notion of doing a Harry/Blake story (though that has evolved into a Harry/Blake/Ilia, long before the recent revelation of Ilia's unrequited infatuation with Blake). But, well, I always intended to post this, and now I have the opportunity.

It's worth pointing out that, after consideration, there will be few influences from the Potterverse, though there will be allusions to Harry and the others going to Earth for the Tri-Wizard Tournament. But that will be background.

Anyway, time for the usual disclaimers. Firstly, there will be spoilers for both Harry Potter and _RWBY_. And yes, that includes Volume 5.

Secondly, there will be heavy annotations, as is usual for my works. You have been warned.

Thirdly, this is an M-Rated work. There will be coarse language, violence, dark themes and sexual references. Again, you have been warned.

Finally, the following is a fan-written work. Harry Potter and _RWBY_ are the properties of their respective owners. Please support the official release. Otherwise, Tyrian will impale you with his stinger tail…


	2. Chapter 1: Drinks and Danger

**CHAPTER 1:**

 **DRINKS AND DANGER**

"So, where are we, exactly?"

This question came from a red-haired girl with green eyes, wide with wonder. She looked altogether too young to be in an establishment like this, even if it wasn't remotely seedy. If it weren't for the three people she was walking with, she would have been either escorted out, or viewed as fresh meat.

"We're at a bar, Penny," an older girl, maybe 17, with reddish-brown hair and what looked like freckles or birthmarks on her face, said.

"A bar? Oh, a meeting place where people attempt to achieve advanced states of mental incompetence through repeated consumption of fermented vegetable drinks!" Penny said with a smile(1).

The sole boy with them, about the same age as the older girls, chuckled. His messy dark hair framed a long face with emerald eyes, with a lightning bolt-shaped scar snaking out from underneath his fringe. "Did your dad teach you that one?"

"Nope."

"Anyway, it's more of a nightclub than a bar," the boy said. "We're only allowed here because, well, Junior knows us. He knows we work for Rusty. As long as we don't start anything, we're fine."

"I like the music," Penny said, bopping along as she walked with them.

"Good. It's been a while since we've had a night out after that extended mission," the boy said.

"It was only extended because those guys thought you were their saviour, Harry," the remaining girl said. She had black hair, golden eyes, and wore a black bow on her head. "Besides, I am not sure it counts as a mission when you're kidnapped to another dimension by an arcane artifact."

"Hey, Rusty counted it as one, Blake, and we got danger pay to boot, even though I was the one to face that dragon…and dive into the lake…and go through that hedge maze," Harry said. "At least the old fart let us go. And we got new friends out of it."

And hadn't that been a saga? Three of the four core members of the Talon covert ops unit of the Atlas Military, along with Penny, kidnapped by wizards from another world? A world that Harry had come from, free from Grimm, but not free from strife. A conflict that had thankfully been stopped before it could begin anew.

They reached the bar, and the bartender took their orders, with Harry ordering some Dust-laden lemonade for Penny. The girl with the reddish-brown hair glanced behind them, only to flinch. "Heads up. Torchwick just entered."

The four gazed at a mirror behind the bar, watching a rather dapper figure approaching. Dressed in a white suit, with a cane, a bowler hat, and a cigar, Torchwick liked to pass himself off as a gentleman thief. Well, he was a thief, and rumoured to be a murderer and with recently-formed links to the Faunus terrorist faction of White Fang, oddly enough. Part of his orange hair hung over his right eye, and the other was made-up in a manner that, if Harry had seen _A Clockwork Orange_ , he would have found familiar.

"Must be why little sis couldn't join us tonight," Harry muttered. "It's a working night, and Roman's probably taking advantage of the time until she goes to Beacon with us."

The cane-wielding thief approached Junior, the embarrassingly-nicknamed proprietor of the nightclub, and began speaking to him quietly. Penny frowned. "I cannot hear much, even with filtering software, but…he seems to want Junior to loan him some men for a job."

"We'll notify Rusty and Ozpin later," Harry said. "Maybe little sis could help us find out what he's up to."

As Torchwick finished his conversation and walked away, a girl about their age, with blonde hair, lilac eyes, and a buxom figure, strutted towards the bar, eventually sitting down next to Harry. Her face seemed vaguely familiar. "Strawberry Sunrise," she said to the bartender. "No ice. Oh, and one of those little umbrellas."

Junior, who had been nearby, came over, and asked, "Aren't you a bit young to be here?"

The girl jabbed her thumb at Harry and his group. "Aren't they? And anyway, aren't you a bit old to have a name like Junior?"

"So you know who I am. Can I ask who you are, then?"

Harry noticed the look in the blonde's face, as well as the shotgun gauntlets currently on standby on her wrists, and said, "If you're going to start shit here, Blondie, can it at least wait until _after_ we've finished our drinks? Bar brawls tend to ruin the mood."

"Hey, I just wanna ask him a few questions," the girl said. "He apparently knows everything." Sighing, she pulled out her Scroll, and showed a picture to Junior. "This woman, you ever see her?"

Junior peered at the picture, of a woman who looked like the blonde, but with black hair and red eyes, and shook his head. "Never seen her before."

"I have," Harry said as he peered at the picture. And he was gratified to see the girl whip her head around to stare at him in shock. "And trust me, you don't want to meet her."

"Oh? And why is that?" the blonde asked, her tone both interested…and dangerous-sounding.

"Can it wait for a few minutes at least? My friends want to finish their drinks first. Trust me, you won't have to beat the answers out of anyone…"

* * *

About fifteen minutes afterwards, they walked out of the nightclub, to just outside it, into the streets of Vale. Light from the shattered moon shone down. "Okay," the blonde said impatiently. "So, what do you know about her?"

"Well, first, introductions. I'm Harry Potter. That's Blake Belladonna. That's Ilia Amitola, and that's Penny Pollendina."

"Salutations!" Penny chirped, smiling.

"Right. I'm Yang Xiao Long," the blonde said. "So, what do you know?"

"Well, I'm guessing the woman is your mother," Harry said, enjoying the look of shock on Yang's face. "Her name is Raven Branwen. And she's not someone you want to trifle with. I only really know of her by reputation. Leader of some bandit tribe. They have this major 'survival of the fittest' mentality going. Not very nice people, and known to even attack Hunters."

"How did you recognise her face, then?" Yang pressed.

"Our boss once briefed us on her," Harry said. "And before you ask, you can't just rock up to him and squeeze his nuts till he starts talking."

"Why not?"

"Well, if you want to try doing that to General Ironwood, be my guest. I'll buy flowers for your funeral," Ilia said.

Yang blinked. "Wait…you guys are from Atlas?"

"Sort of. We're transfers to Beacon, part of an exchange program. There's a fifth one, my kid sister, but she isn't here. You go to Beacon yet?"

"Actually, I'm starting with the most recent intake," Yang said. She peered at them. "And you can't tell me any more about her?"

"Not really, nothing you'd like," Ilia said.

"Yang? What are you doing here?"

The voice was that of a girl approaching them, one in her mid-teens. With the red hooded cloak and the black dress, Harry was put in mind of Little Red Riding Hood. Short dark hair with slight red streaks framed her face, from which a pair of silver eyes peered out. "Oh, hey sis!" Yang said. "It's kinda a long story."

"Right…and who are these people?" the girl asked.

"Salutations!" Penny chirped.

"Hey. We were just telling your sister what little information we had about your mother," Harry said. He wasn't sure how these two were related, though. Adopted? Half-siblings? There was some resemblance.

The girl frowned, and then looked at Yang. "You mean your birth mother, right, Yang?"

"Yeah. I wasn't asking them about Mom. We both know where she is," Yang said, looking morose, an expression shared by the younger girl.

"And you are…?" Blake asked.

"This is my little sister, Ruby Rose. Well, half-sister, but we don't care about that," Yang said. "Ruby, these people are exchange students from Atlas."

Harry introduced them, and Penny, true to form, said, "I hope we can be friends, Ruby and Yang!"

Ruby looked accepting, though Yang seemed bemused. "Don't worry about her. She had an overprotective father, she hasn't gotten out much. But she's a good fighter," Ilia said. Which was true enough, Harry reflected.

"Oh, I know that feeling," Yang said, as Ruby and Penny exchanged Scroll addresses. "Our father…he's pretty protective too. See you at Beacon, then?"

"Sure…"

* * *

In his hotel room later that night, Harry peered at the information forwarded to his Scroll. _Okay, Yang Xiao Long and Ruby Rose, half-sisters. Yang is definitely the daughter of Taiyang Xiao Long and Raven Branwen, and Ruby's the daughter of Taiyang and Summer Rose. Along with Qrow Branwen, those three formed the Beacon Hunter Team STRQ. Yang noted to fight using shotgauntlets known as Ember Celica, while Ruby, like her uncle Qrow, uses a rifle-scythe called the Crescent Rose. For her age, Ruby is apparently something of a prodigy when it comes to combat, though she is also a noted eccentric_.

 _Not that I can talk_ , Harry thought ruefully, lying back on the bed he had been sitting on. _Talon's been filled with mavericks ever since Rusty invited little sis and I. Then we brought in Blake and Ilia. Oum, I'm glad Blake got away from White Fang after Sienna Khan's true colours showed. And Ilia…I'll bet you any money she would have deserted us and joined White Fang if we hadn't been there to comfort her when her parents died. And that's without going into my abilities_.

Harry, you see, came from another world, one called Earth rather than Remnant. He had been orphaned as a child, and raised by…relatives. Though he wouldn't even call them that if he had his way. But when he was eight, he had been on a school excursion with his cousin to the Wookey Hole caves…and pushed down an abyss by him.

He didn't die. No. He woke up, battered and bruised, and was found by people in a nearby orphanage…an orphanage where he met the girl he would call a little sister for the first time. But after the orphanage changed hands, and the new heads turned out to be as bad as the Dursleys, he and his little sister fled…and found refuge, for a time, at Menagerie…and in the Belladonna household. It was there that he met the first of his future girlfriends, a cat-eared Faunus called Blake.

Of course, it was a long, complicated, and difficult road that eventually led to Harry and his sister joining Atlas, after a time spent as vigilantes in that kingdom. Blake wouldn't do so until later, convinced that she could do more good within the White Fang…until Sienna Khan took over the leadership, and they began terrorist attacks. Blake left White Fang at the age of 15…and joined the maverick group Harry and his sister joined in Atlas' military: Talon.

Talon was a group that specialised in reconnaissance, espionage, and unconventional warfare. While many derided it as an anti-White Fang group, it was actually meant to deal with enemies both without and within Atlas…including the Schnee Dust Company, whose monopoly on the Dust Atlas used and its increasingly brutal practises towards employees (especially Faunus) meant they were enemies. And there was something else, something few people in the world knew about.

Harry's little sister was on undercover work frequently, having caught the eye of one of the more infamous criminals of Vale. Even now, they were allowing her to go to Beacon with Harry as a spy for said criminal and his employers. That little plan nearly got scuppered when, over a series of months, Harry was abducted by a magical artifact and forcibly returned to the home of his birth (and it was weird, learning that six years had passed on Earth, while eight had passed on Remnant). There, he had to deal with an irritating tournament that was, at least, mildly interesting, though he would have preferred the Vytal Festival's tournament. Oh, and he prevented the resurrection of the man who murdered his parents. Now it was up to that old fart to clean up the rest.

Some of those from that world had emigrated here. That Granger girl, for example, had been a major help when refining Harry's abilities, and she was now training. His godfather and that werewolf who knew his birth parents were coming to Beacon later, apparently as part of some collaboration with Ozpin.

His Scroll chirped, and he found a message from his little sister. _Hey, Harry. You all excited about going to Beacon?_

He smiled, and tapped out a response. _Of course. We saw the orange-haired pimp swaggering through Junior's club tonight. You know anything about that?_

He knew she'd be laughing…well, as much as she could given her condition, at that. _Apparently he's going shopping for Dust. You know that woman who approached us? She wants a lot of Dust. I've notified Rusty, and doubtless he'll tell the Wizard of Oz_.

Meaning Ozpin. Harry had often called Ozpin that, having seen the film before being chucked down the hole by Dudley. His sister picked up the usage of the name. _Well, take care. I'll see you on the airship to Beacon._

 _Will do. Don't forget the ice cream vouchers_ …

* * *

In the warehouse used by Roman Torchwick as his base, a girl in her mid-teens pocketed her Scroll, smiling. She was dressed rather elegantly, the ensemble topped off by a frilly pink umbrella, her hair was brown and pink, the latter having white streaks in it, her eyes also brown and pink. She hopped down off a pile of boxes, and stepped over to where Torchwick was poring over a map of Vale, one that showed locations of Dust shops and storehouses.

"Hey, Neo," Torchwick asked. "Have fun messaging your brother?"

Neo, aka Neopolitan, shrugged, the gesture meant to show an apparent apathy for her brother, an apathy she didn't actually feel. It seemed to get the right response, for Torchwick nodded. "Okay. Just remember what you're doing. And remember, Cinder doesn't tolerate failure, so don't expose yourself. Especially not to your brother."

 _Oh, Roman_ , Neo thought, even as she nodded. _You have literally no idea what you've gotten yourself into. You think yourself big time, but between Talon and Cinder, you're small time. Especially if who we believe Cinder's true boss is correct. You're just a pawn being used by Salem_ …

 **CHAPTER 1 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **A different beginning to the story I originally wanted to tell. While I considered doing a story where Harry was dragged back to Earth by the Goblet…I've done a lot of Year Four stories, and I wanted to do this story with a minimum of Potterverse baggage, so they will be more background than anything else.**

 **Now, the relationships are as follows: Harry is lovers with both Blake and Ilia, but Neo and Penny are both little sisters to him. When he gets better acquainted with Ruby, she'll be a little sister, and Yang will be a sister figure too.**

 **You might have noticed, but the chapter was partially adapted from the Yellow Trailer that introduced Yang. Just saying.**

 **Also, some of the following chapters will be adapted from the original version of** ** _Under the Light of the Shattered Moon_** **.**

 **1\. Penny is aping Kryten's joke about pubs in the** ** _Red Dwarf_** **episode** ** _Timeslides_** **.**


	3. Chapter 2: Beacon

**CHAPTER 2:**

 **BEACON**

As he passed the blonde puking into the bin at the airship dock, Harry said, "Next time, get a ginger pill or something, mate." He had discreetly cast a Scourgify on his shoes, grateful that his time on Earth during the Tri-Wizard Tournament had taught him that much.

The boy moaned weakly, but nodded. "And he's a wannabe Huntsman?" Ilia asked as they followed Ruby and Yang, whom they encountered on the ship.

"Hey, maybe he just gets motion sickness easily," Harry said with a shrug, before watching Ruby fangirl out at all the weapons on display. "I'm wondering why Ozpin brought her in early, though. It's got to be more than impressing him with her skills foiling Torchwick." Harry then looked at Neo, who was coming up to them. "Crap, I forgot to introduce you two, didn't I?"

Neo shrugged. As Yang scurried off with some friends, Harry and his friends were about to approach Ruby, only for Ilia to frown. "Heads up, here comes Winter's bratty kid sister."

The girl in question was pale-skinned, blue eyes, and with bluish-white hair. Her haughty demeanour was very much of a would-be princess. And in a way, that was precisely who she was: Weiss Schnee, the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, and daughter of one of their enemies, as they had exposed the SDC's dirty dealings before. Ruby had fallen onto her luggage trolley, and Weiss had been launching into a tirade, waving a small vial of Dust at Ruby…who sneezed when the Dust, leaking from underneath an unsecure lid, entered her nose.

The quintet threw up their hands to shield themselves from the small Dust explosion, leaving a small crater in the ground nearby, and covering Weiss' face with soot. The vial rolled to a stop against Neo's foot, who plucked it up off the ground. As Weiss and Ruby argued, Harry decided to intervene. "Hey, you should be more careful about how you secure your Dust vials, Little Miss Heiress," Harry said, as Neo handed the vial back over to a bemused Weiss. "She couldn't have set off your Dust with a sneeze if the lid was still on."

Weiss glared at him. "And you are?"

"Harry. I'm…a colleague of your sister's. And she'd be disappointed at your lack of deportment…though she gets annoyed at mine all the time. Anyway, it was an accident. Though the SDC could stand to have less of those, what with its standards of safety…or lack thereof. And that's without going into how they treat their employees, especially Faunus ones."

"Why…you…" Weiss took her luggage and stormed off in a huff.

Ruby sighed, before turning to Harry and the others. "Well, at least I have a few friendly faces. It's nice to see you again, Penny! And Harry, Blake, Ilia, and…uh…"

"Oh, right, you didn't meet her last time," Harry said. "Ruby Rose, meet Neopolitan. We call her Neo. My sister. Well, as good as. She's not exactly talkative."

"She doesn't look shy to me," Ruby said.

Neo shrugged, and then tapped her throat, mouthing, _Can't speak_.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Ruby said, aghast.

"It's fine, she's used to it," Harry said. "Neo's enough of a smartarse without being able to speak. Ow! Hey!" This last was in response to Neo playfully and lightly swatting him over the head with her umbrella.

Ilia chuckled. "You should know not to annoy her, Harry."

"So, you guys want to hang out, then?" Ruby asked.

"You sure you want to hang out with Faunus?" Ilia asked.

Ruby shrugged. "I don't care, as long as you're not bad guys. I like your ears, Blake."

Blake, who had taken off her bow at Harry's suggestion for their transfer to Beacon, smiled. "Thank you."

"But what sort of Faunus are you, Ilia?"

"Chameleon," Ilia said, her skin shifting to different colours. In fact, her parents sent her to Atlas Academy because they knew she could pass for human as long as she didn't show her ability to change colour.

"Cool! Can you be all, like, stealthy and stuff?" Ruby asked.

"She mostly changes colour based on mood," Blake said quietly. "It's not exactly camouflage, Ruby."

Ilia nodded. "Though I can use it like camouflage to a degree. I'm glad you like it, Ruby. Not many people do. When my parents died in a collapse at a Dust mine, some people mocked them, not knowing I was a Faunus. In my grief, I turned blue…and they mocked me when they realised what happened. If it weren't for my friends being there to comfort me…"

"I see," Ruby said solemnly. "I'm sorry to hear that, Ilia."

Blake looked over at Harry. "Do you mind if I have a wander before the opening ceremony?"

"Sure."

"Can I look around too?" Penny asked.

"Okay, just don't wander too far," Harry warned.

As Blake and Penny walked off, Ruby frowned. "Where are they going?"

"Penny likes to explore new places. And Blake likes peace and quiet every now and then," Harry explained. "Sometimes, all she wants is a nice quiet corner to read a book in, or a peaceful walk. I know my girlfriend long enough to know when she gets this way, and I just let her be."

"Wait, wait, you two are girlfriend and boyfriend?" Ruby asked.

Ilia chuckled, though she didn't tell Ruby that she was also Harry's girlfriend and lover…or, more to the point, she was Blake's, and didn't mind sharing, or sleeping, with Harry. "Yep. Have been for a couple of years now. They make a cute couple. Blake's pretty lucky to have Harry. Her first boyfriend…was not the nicest person."

Harry scowled at the reminder of Adam Taurus, Neo putting a hand on his arm. Before they could get into any further discussion, the blonde boy with the motion sickness issues wandered up. "Hey, I'm Jaune."

"Ruby," Ruby replied, before remarking, with a distinct lack of tact, "Aren't you the guy who barfed on the ship?"

* * *

Harry found himself wandering with Ilia and Neo, following Jaune and Ruby as they discussed their weapons. Like Ruby and Yang, Jaune didn't seem to have any issues with Faunus, only White Fang. Harry did have to wonder how someone like him got into Beacon, though. Coasting on the Arc family's reputation, maybe, as the Arcs did have at least one famous ancestor, to his knowledge. Oh, he seemed earnest enough, beneath the nervousness and awkwardness.

That being said, Harry, Neo and Ilia had to escort the two back to the auditorium when the time came for the opening ceremony. Blake joined them soon after. "Enjoy your walk, Blake?" Harry asked.

The cat-eared girl nodded. "Is this a new friend?"

"Well, as I told these guys, my mother told me that strangers are just friends you haven't met yet," Jaune said. "I'm Jaune Arc."

"Blake Belladonna," she replied courteously.

Penny had already gone into the auditorium, and they joined her soon afterwards. Ruby was called over by Yang. Ruby made her excuses and scurried off, while Jaune, after a moment, wandered off despondently. Ilia frowned as she looked around, and noticed a red-haired girl with green eyes, wearing vaguely Grecian armour. "Huh. Looks like we have a celebrity. That's Pyrrha Nikos."

"The one who's on the cereal boxes? The one who won the Mistral Regional Tournament four times in a row?" Harry asked. "Huh. People are going to be queuing up to be her teammate, I'm sure."

"She looks pretty subdued for a celebrity," Blake observed.

Penny, meanwhile, was looking around the auditorium in excitement. They waited, briefly overhearing an argument between Ruby and Weiss, until finally, at a lectern at the other end of the auditorium, Ozpin appeared, clearing his throat to get their attention. "I'll keep this brief. You have journeyed here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and at the end of that, you intend to dedicate your life to protecting people. But I gaze amongst you all, and what I see is wasted energy that requires purpose and direction. You believe that knowledge will set you free of such problems, but your time here at Beacon will show you that knowledge will only take you so far. Taking the first step is up to you." Throughout it, his voice was calm, but also somewhat flat.

"Okay, I've heard better motivational speeches from _Winter_ ," Harry muttered, _sotto voce_.

"Yeah. I mean, I get what he's saying, and being a Hunter is no picnic, but you'd think he'd try and get you motivated, not depressed," Ilia said.

"I'm motivated," Blake said, completely deadpan. "Yay. Woo."

Neo chuckled quietly, the sound having the air of mirthful coughing.

* * *

The students were to sleep together in the hall en masse, like some big slumber part. Harry and Blake were sitting side by side, Blake reading _The Man with Two Souls_. Ilia and Neo were sitting together nearby, while Penny had gone over to chat to Ruby and Yang. "I really hope we're on the same team," Harry said quietly. "We've worked together for so long…though Oum knows how the team assignments are made."

"I hope we are too. What's your thoughts on the Arc boy?"

"In over his head. He might be competent, but becoming Hunters is not for the faint-hearted or weak. He's going to either sink or swim. That being said, I really hope we're not on the same team as that wanker over there."

Blake noticed his glare at a tall boy with reddish-brown hair. The boy noticed his scrutiny, and sneered, and mouthed _Filthy animal_ at them. Blake sighed, and muttered, "I wish you hadn't talked me into not wearing the bow."

"Blake, I love you the way you are." He gently stroked one of her ears, and she closed her eyes, all but purring from his gentle ministrations. "At least the others we met don't give a damn. Ruby, Yang, Jaune…they're some of the nicest humans we've met."

"And there's Neo and you," Blake said. "And for all Ironwood being so cold…he's a good man at heart." Then, an impish smirk touched her lips. "You do know that we'll be sleeping in dorms, with our teammates? So we won't have much privacy for…you know."

"That's what the trunk is for, remember? They won't be able to complain about the noise we make if we go in there," Harry said with an equally impish smirk.

The two shared a soft chuckle at the thought, and sat there, sharing each other's company, while waiting for sleep to finally claim them…

* * *

The next morning, the five friends from Talon made their way to the cliffs overlooking the Emerald Forest, ready for initiation. Harry and the others had been accosted by some redhead by the name of Nora Valkyrie, and had listened to her harebrained plans. "All I'm saying is that I've known a sloth Animagus by the name of Grif, and he doesn't sound anything like that," he pointed out.

"But that's why it's the perfect plan!"

Neo raised an eyebrow, as if to say, _Really?_ But before anything could be said further, Ozpin directed them to the catapult platforms. Harry and the other Talon members didn't need to undergo initiation, but it had been agreed that they would still do it, if only to better camouflage the fact that they were sent here mostly as insurance against those who wanted to see Beacon fall.

Ozpin said, "For years, you've been training as warriors. Today, that training will be put to the test here in the Emerald Forest."

Glynda nodded, and added, "Let me put the rumours of how we pick teams to rest. You will be given teammates today."

"Those teammates will be your comrades throughout your time here," Ozpin continued, "so it is in your best interest to be paired with someone you would work well with. That being said, after landing, the first person you make eye contact with will be your partner for the next four years."

"WHAT?!" Ruby yelped.

Harry looked askance at Ozpin. "You're a bloody troll, Ozpin. In the unlikely event that I die giving some Nevermore indigestion, I thought you should know that."

A wave of laughter, some of it strained, swept the line of students. Even Ozpin chuckled, before his expression became solemn once more. "After you've partnered up, head to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way, opposition that you must strike down, or else you will die." As Jaune, and a couple of others, got more nervous at that, Ozpin continued, "You will be monitored and graded throughout by the instructors here, but they will not interfere. There's an abandoned temple at the end of the path with relics. Each pair must choose one, and then return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, and your standing, and grade you appropriately. Any questions?" Jaune put his hand up, only for Ozpin to say, "Good! Now, take your positions."

"Again, you're a bloody troll, Ozpin," Harry muttered, only to be nudged by Blake.

"Um, sir, what about, well, landing?" Jaune asked as the catapult platforms began to be activated. "Are you dropping us off?"

"No. You'll be falling. And no parachutes. Students have to figure out their own landing strategy."

Blake, then Neo and Penny and Ilia, got launched into the air, and Harry, after sending a spell Jaune's way, once more gave Ozpin a flat look. "Has anyone told you you're a bloody TROLLLLLLL?!" Harry yelled, just as he was launched into the air.

As Jaune soon followed, Ozpin took a sip of his hot chocolate, and remarked to Glynda, "It has been noted…"

 **CHAPTER 2 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **Seriously, Ozpin is a troll.**

 **I gave a little edit here in light of Ilia's revealed sexuality in Volume 5 of** ** _RWBY_** **, the relevant episode of which only just came out after I finally made the decision to publish it. I've decided that Ilia here is bisexual (it's still possible until we know otherwise about whether she's a lesbian or bi), but she leans more towards being Blake's lover than Harry's. She's just willing to share, unlike the canon Ilia, who has shown herself to be…well, a bit of a** ** _yandere_** **. It probably helps that Harry was a friend of hers within Atlas long before her parents died. I'll be making other such edits later in the story.**

 **No numbered annotations this time.**


	4. Chapter 3: The Emerald Forest

**CHAPTER 3:**

 **THE EMERALD FOREST**

Harry, thankfully, had a good landing strategy: use his weapon to break his fall. Well, one part of it, anyway. You see, it had been partly his choice of weapons that had inspired Penny's own armaments.

What people didn't notice was that he wore a glove over his right hand, one from which he could unleash special monofilament wires. Almost invisible unless the light caught them in the right way. He could slice something in half…or grapple things from afar. He'd call it the Power Glove, but that name…it was so bad.

Case in point, he lashed out, latched onto a tree, and swung around it, slowing himself down with that, plus a bit of magic. He landed, rolled, and grinned, flinging his arms to the sky. "And he sticks the landing! Don't applaud, just throw Lien at me!"

The nearby bushes rustled, and a Beowulf lumbered out. It snarled, and began charging at Harry. "Everyone's a critic," Harry muttered, before diving to one side. As the Beowulf spun and snarled at him again, Harry flung out his wires. "GET OVER HERE!" he roared.

The wires ensnared the Beowulf, and he yanked it towards him. With his left hand, he pulled his other weapon off his back, and as the Beowulf's snarling mouth approached, he fired it. The crossbow bolt, laden with a custom Dust mixture, rammed into the Grimm's throat, and exploded, coating Harry's face with gore.

His wire gloves, the Walter, and the crossbow, the Gabriel. His two main weapons in this world. And already with the blood of many a Grimm on their hands…and others. Though the Gabriel wasn't his primary weapon for shooting things from afar. Unfortunately, THAT was getting repaired back at Atlas…or rather, rebuilt.

He heard another Beowulf approaching, and spun as it leapt at him. He raised his crossbow to fire, only for a bunch of short swords to shred it into mince in mid-air. Green eyes met green eyes, and the two smiled. "Thanks, Penny," Harry said.

Penny nodded, the swords hovering around her, suspended on virtually invisible monofilaments. "Always happy to help, Harry. It seems we will still be on the same team after all."

And Harry was grateful for it. Since he came to join Atlas, Harry had become friends with Penny's father, Doctor Pollendina, and it was he who became Penny's first friend when the artificial intelligence was finally housed in a gynoid body. Harry made sure to treat Penny like a real girl, and he got the feeling that both Doctor Pollendina and Ironwood were grateful for it. While Ironwood wanted to use Penny as a weapon, he also treated her like a human being, despite her being a robot. And while Penny was eccentric, she also had a good heart. And given that she had an Aura, you couldn't deny that she had a soul either.

"Okay, let's get going," Harry said.

* * *

They soon came across Pyrrha Nikos helping Jaune down from a tree. Apparently the redhead had used a spear to pin Jaune to a tree, through his clothes, luckily. "You need any help, you two?" Harry asked.

"We're fine," Pyrrha said, smiling.

Jaune nodded, looking shaken, but not stirred. "I just don't think I'm meant to fly. I'm not aerodynamic enough."

"Maybe we should stick together, friends," Penny said. "We may not be part of the same team, but there is safety in numbers, yes?"

"Great idea," Jaune said, nodding, and Harry and Pyrrha also nodded in agreement.

* * *

"Seriously, mate, you didn't know about Aura?" Harry asked Jaune as they walked through the forest. Pyrrha, while remarking on some gunshots they had heard, had accidentally hit Jaune in the face with a branch, inflicting a cut, and prompting Pyrrha to awaken the nervous boy's Aura. "It's like one of the most basic things you learn when you're learning to become a Hunter."

"I must've missed that stuff," the blonde said. It was a pretty blatant lie, and Harry wondered how competent he truly was. Still, he stayed fairly alert, and Pyrrha had commented that Jaune had a powerful Aura, so he had potential.

"Okay, well, while we're not about to die, let's look at one particular form of using an Aura: Semblance. A Semblance is like a unique ability. It can be an attack, or a defensive ability. Mine, for example, is being able to control the position of certain substances like Dust."

"And Penny's?" Pyrrha asked.

"Let's just say it's overkill against most Grimm," Harry said. "What about yours, Pyrrha?"

"Polarity. I can use magnetic forces to control metal," Pyrrha said. "Anyway, I wonder whose gunshots we heard."

"Who knows?" Harry said. "I hope Blake's doing fine…"

* * *

" _EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!_ "

Blake watched the blonde Fury punch-sploding the various Grimm around her, and made a mental note never to allow Gambol Shroud to get into any position of cutting Yang's hair, accidentally or otherwise. For the sake of her health. The littered dismembered corpses of Grimm scattered around Yang was a good example of what would happen otherwise.

" _YANG THE STRONGEST THERE IS! YANG SMASH PUNY GRIMM!_ "

Yep. While Blake was alacritous enough to avoid Yang's wrath, it would be best to avoid that in the first place. The only way to stop her was probably going to be taking an arm off…though Blake had to wonder why she thought 'too soon'…

* * *

The quartet fought a series of running battles as they made their way to the goal. Unfortunately, there was a somewhat persistent Nevermore, a massive raven-like Grimm, that kept circling the area and occasionally firing its feathers at them. "Stupid bloody bird!" Harry snarled. "Don't you know I'd only give you indigestion if you tried to eat me?!"

"Less yelling and more running!" Jaune yelled. "Anyway, do we really want to antagonise the homicidal bird Grimm?"

"No, we want to _kill_ it!" Harry yelled, before he fired off spells at it. At least one hit home, a pretty nasty Blasting Curse that he was taught by his godfather, and the monstrous bird screeched in pain, and then began flying away. "Or drive it away, either way is fine."

"It'll be back, though," Pyrrha said.

"Yeah, Grimm may not have souls, but damn if they can't hold grudges," Harry muttered. "There was this Ursa Neo and I drove off once, and it came back months later to attack us. I remember because it had a bit of bone chipped off its mask thing that we recognised."

To their relief, they soon found the temple, and Blake and Yang were already there. And they also saw two other students approaching the temple, the girl originally charging in on the back of an Ursa. Harry recognised that hyperactive weird girl with the orange hair and the sloth obsession, Nora something or other, and some stoic-looking boy with dark hair, albeit with a purple streak. Soon, Neo and Ilia emerged.

And then, they heard Ruby screaming as she fell from above…from a Nevermore. "HEADS UP!" she screamed.

"Neo!" Harry yelled at his sister. Neo nodded, and getting a boost into the air from her brother, she leapt into the air and caught Ruby, opening her umbrella to slow their fall.

"Whoo…thanks for the save, Neo," Ruby said, getting a smile from the mute girl, before Ruby panicked. "AH! Weiss! She's still up there! She hasn't jumped!"

"Weiss is your partner?" Harry asked, looking up at the Nevermore. "Tough break. Hey, Penny, d'you think you can catch her safely?"

Penny nodded, the swords hovering behind her back suddenly changing, parts of them becoming like the wings of an airplane(1). Everyone who didn't know her stared. Though Nora murmured, "Cool…"

"She's falling…" Blake said, looking up in the sky.

"Not for long!" Penny declared, before blasting off into the sky.

Jaune gaped, and then looked at Harry. "How did…what the…?"

"You like eating flies, Jaune?" Harry asked wryly as Penny caught Weiss.

"…Is that her Semblance?" Pyrrha asked. "Turning herself into a human airship?"

"You might think that," Ilia said coyly.

Penny landed, her wings transforming back into the swords. Weiss looked rattled by her near-death experience. "You left me," Weiss hissed at Ruby accusingly, deciding not to question how Penny saved her.

"I told you to jump," Ruby protested.

"Enough," Harry said. "Look, we're here now. We'd better get what we came for, and leg it. That probably wasn't the same Nevermore we fought earlier, which means we have two big flying Grimm who want us dead. We'd better thank our lucky stars we haven't stumbled across a Death Stalker or something."

"Don't say that, Harry. You'll jinx it," Blake remarked wearily. She indicated the temple ruins, where a number of plinths were set up with chess pieces. "You'll have to take one."

Ruby rushed forward, and grabbed a white knight, while Jaune plucked a white rook. Nora grabbed a white rook as well. Harry and Neo plucked a pair of white bishops. "Okay, time to go," Ruby said.

* * *

Ozpin watched the feed from his Scroll as the dozen potential students fought a series of running battles. He hummed quietly to himself as he sipped from his mug of hot chocolate. "Interesting teams forming up. Though James' little group of ringers may prove to be helpful."

"I'm surprised the General assented to using child soldiers," Glynda said. "You know his opinion on the matter."

"Technically, they're not soldiers," Ozpin said. "He prefers to use the term prodigies. Or mavericks. Or, 'bloody annoying', as he puts it sometimes. Harry and Neopolitan were vigilantes, before they ran afoul of the Atlesian Military. He recognised their skills despite their age, and recruited them into what became Talon. It was originally meant as an anti-White Fang organisation, especially how the organisation changed after Sienna Khan took over, but it was also used to, albeit unofficially, deal with some of the problems caused by people like Jacques Schnee and the SDC. Ironic, considering that Winter Schnee is in overall command of Talon. They also were brought into James' confidence regarding certain matters. Indeed, Neopolitan has been undercover in Roman Torchwick's organisation for some time. She's managed to get us some vital information about his movements, as well as those of one of the people who were involved in the attack on Amber. And through them, she knows a little of the plans of Salem."

Glynda shuddered at the thought of the mysterious entity that Ozpin spoke sparingly of, if at all. Changing the subject, she said, "And the Pollendina girl?"

"Ah, yes. Penny is one of James' pet projects. You know of Atlas' obsession with mechanised military hardware…and it had its logical culmination in her. A robot…but more than that. She has an Aura, Glynda."

"An Aura? But if she's a robot…"

"Indeed. She has a soul. And James treats her as more than a machine or a weapon. By allowing Penny to come here, he is showing a lot of trust in us. That trust is necessary for what is coming, Glynda. James and I may not see eye to eye on many things…but we agree on the essentials…"

* * *

"Don't say I told you so!" Harry yelled as they ran across a bridge into some ruins near a cliff, said bridge being over a ravine. The reason for that? Well, aside from two Nevermores attacking, a Death Stalker HAD come along. And considering that a Death Stalker was a big fucking scorpion…

"My lips are sealed," Ilia said wryly.

Any further comments were silenced when one Nevermore swooped in and destroyed part of the bridge. Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora and Ren (as the stoic boy was introduced to them as) were on one side, namely the side with the Death Stalker, and the others were stranded on the other side. "Son of a bitch!" Harry yelled.

"Language!" Ruby yelped.

"This isn't the time!" Harry retorted.

The Nevermores now attacked them relentlessly, and Harry struggled to think about what he knew about Nevermores. "Okay!" Harry yelled. "Divide and conquer! You four," he indicated Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang, "you take one, we'll take the other!"

"Got it!" Ruby said with a nod.

 _Our weaponry is mostly short range_ , Harry thought as he watched the massive Nevermores circling in the sky. _Nevermores generally swoop in to attack with their beaks or talons, but these ones have been a bit generous with those feather-dagger attacks. What we need is a decisive attack, which means Penny gets to show off her beam attack…but that works best on a target that isn't moving as much as a Nevermore. We need to pin it down_.

He smirked. Neo's illusions could affect Grimm. "Neo, lure it! Ilia, get ready to stun the bastard! I'll net it…and Penny…get ready to give it the _coup de grace_."

They nodded, and Harry and Ilia went to differing sides of a couple of pillars, while Neo wove her illusion. Penny stood to one side, her swords circling and spinning, with a green glow appearing in their centre. Harry then wove his wires between two of the pillars, effectively making a net, hardening the pillars through the wires as he did so.

The Nevermore fell for it, its charge shattering Neo's illusion, not realising it was an illusion until Harry was nearly pulled off his feet by the Nevermore crashing into the impromptu net of wires he had made. Ilia used her whip to attack the Nevermore, causing it to convulse and screech, before getting out of the way. Then, Penny unleashed her beam attack, verdant energy blasting forward and slicing through the Nevermore, disintegrating a good part of it.

As they turned to see what Ruby, Weiss, Yang and Blake were doing, Harry saw that Blake had used part of Gambol Shroud as an impromptu catapult, with Weiss using her Glyph Semblance to draw back the catapult, Ruby being the projectile. The Nevermore they were fighting had its tail frozen to a nearby ruin in front of the cliffs. Ruby, with a yell, was flung forward, and with help from her Semblance and Weiss' Glyphs, she caught the Nevermore's neck in the blade of her scythe, ran up the cliff, and then finally severed the Nevermore's head from its shoulders.

"Okay," Harry said. "That was badass…"

* * *

Later, the graduating teams were assigned by Ozpin. Of them, Harry was disappointed to see that the anti-Faunus idiot from the previous night, one Cardin Winchester, was now leader of his own team, CRDL (or 'Cardinal'). Jaune, to Harry's astonishment (as well as Jaune's) got to lead Nora, Pyrrha, and Ren as Team JNPR (or 'Juniper'), though he did hear from an effusive Nora and a calmer but still impressed Pyrrha that he had worked pretty well fighting the Death Stalker.

Anyway, Blake was now part of Team RWBY (or 'Ruby'), with Ruby leading them. And then, Harry found out that he was now part of Team HPIN (or 'Hyperion'). And he was its leader.

Still, Ruby had potential, he had to admit as they walked to their assigned dorms. She just needed it honed. Maybe that's why Ozpin placed her as a leader. Still, maybe he, along with Blake and the rest of HPIN, could help her.

Lost in his thoughts, he nearly didn't notice when Neo nudged him. He knew the look he gave her. "Okay, we'll celebrate with ice cream. My treat."

Neo hugged him. "You'd do anything for her, wouldn't you?" Ilia chuckled.

"Of course. I'd do anything for my cute little sisters," Harry said, drawing Penny into the hug as well.

"Do you think we exposed too much of Penny's abilities today, though?" Ilia asked.

"Look, Ozpin is aware of it, and Goodwitch is cleared for it, according to Rusty," Harry said with a shrug. "Unless they ask, it's her Semblance. Which is pretty much the truth anyway."

"What an auspicious start to our time here!" Penny chirped. "A shame Blake isn't part of our team."

"Don't worry. She'll be fine, as long as the Schnee girl doesn't start anything," Ilia said.

"It's those guys on CRDL I'm worried about," Harry mused. "Anyway, I'm tired. We'd better get some kip. Classes start at 9 o'clock sharp tomorrow morning, and while that's late by Atlas standards, we'll have to get a move-on anyway…"

* * *

General James Ironwood nodded in satisfaction when he got the results sent to him by Ozpin. So, Blake was now part of a team that included the children of Taiyang Xiao Long and the heiress to the SDC, while the other four members of Talon's most infamous group were now part of Team HPIN. And it seemed that they all had acquitted themselves very well. He expected no less. That part of Talon were mavericks who disdained the chain of command, but Harry, Blake, Ilia, Penny and Neopolitan were all good fighters, and loyal. Not to Atlas, which was irritating, but they showed personal loyalty to Ironwood, as well as what Ironwood would have to fight against. And that was what counted.

What was more, thanks to Harry's impromptu mission to another world (that began with a kidnapping), he now had a few people from Harry's homeworld, mages, who could be of help in Ozpin's little crusade. True, they were as much mavericks as Harry and the others were, but they also understood the stakes involved. After all, it was one thing to hear about the fate of the world resting on the shoulders of heroes from fairytales. It was another for it to happen in reality.

Still, this was another step taken. Victory couldn't be assured, especially as they had no idea of the true enemy's reach. But Ironwood had faith enough in his team that they would do what was needed to stop that. Already, there were indications that Vale was to be the first target of Salem's pawns. How and when were unknown. But his people would be ready. He just hoped they were ready enough…

 **CHAPTER 3 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, Team HPIN has been formed.**

 **Lots of shout-outs in this chapter, BTW. I'm sure you could spot them. I did remove a lot of shout-outs to** ** _Red vs Blue_** **from the original version of this chapter, but there's still one left in.**

 **In the original version of this story, Harry's weapon was a trident, but I decided to have him use two. The Walter is basically Walter C Dornez's weapon from** ** _Hellsing_** **, while the Gabriel is basically a supercrossbow, which can be put on fully automatic if need be, like Gabriel van Helsing's crossbow from** ** _Van Helsing_** **. And yes, I love that movie, despite its faults.**

 **I actually also wrote in a little bit stating Harry has a weapon he usually uses instead of Gabriel. That weapon will come back later in the story. It's another** ** _Hellsing_** **-style weapon.**

 **1\. While this doesn't happen in the actual series, it does happen in the manga. Yep, Penny can turn her swords into wings and** ** _fly_** **. And while the canonicity of the manga is debatable, well…a flying Penny is always cool.**


	5. Chapter 4: Chains of Commanding

**CHAPTER 4:**

 **CHAINS OF COMMANDING**

Team HPIN were up fairly early, as was their wont to do during their time at Atlas. They were mavericks, true, and when they could get away with it, they slept in at times, much to Ironwood's irritation. However, this morning, they needed to see Ozpin before heading to class. Blake was doing so as well.

Harry and his friends and lovers, thus, found their way to the office of the headmaster of Beacon. He was a man of indeterminate age, his relatively young features offset by a shock of silvery-grey hair and a pair of glasses, and he walked with a cane. Contrary to popular opinion, the mug he had with him habitually was not coffee or tea, but hot chocolate.

"Good morning," Ozpin said. A number of small cloches were present on the desk. "I took the liberty of asking James what your breakfast preferences were, and I thought, given you'll need to be in classes before long, we could make this a working breakfast."

"What about you?" Harry asked as the quintet sat down. "Do you just run off hot chocolate?"

Ozpin laughed. "I wish."

Harry indicated Neo with his head. "Neo here wishes she could run off ice cream. No prizes for guessing her favourite variety. Ow!" This last was to Neo playfully punching him in the arm.

"I must confess, I'm surprised that Penny is capable of eating," Ozpin said. "I was made privy to her true nature, thanks to James, and I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprised on many counts. You are a fine young woman, and I'm glad to have you here."

Penny smiled back at the headmaster of Beacon, gratified that he called her a young woman, instead of a robot. "Thank you, Professor Ozpin. I'm glad to be here to make new friends. Ruby is already a good friend."

As they began eating their meals, Ozpin said, "That being said, I should get down to business. Officially, you five are transfer students handpicked by James. Unofficially, you are here as a means of helping protect Beacon from a growing threat."

"Salem and her pawns," Ilia said. "Hard to imagine there's a person out there capable of controlling the Grimm like she does."

"I know Salem of old, and she doesn't quite count as a person…not anymore, anyway," Ozpin said, his tone tinged with…was that sadness? There was something undeniably rueful about his tone, anyway. "As it is, the information Neo has given us is our best lead."

"You're talking about this Cinder Fall person who has employed Torchwick, right?" Harry asked as Neo preened.

Ozpin nodded. "I cannot be certain, as there were no eyewitnesses to the incident itself, but Cinder's general description does match that of one of the people seen in the area when the latest Fall Maiden was attacked. Both Glynda and Ruby glimpsed a woman matching Cinder's description in a Bullhead Roman Torchwick used to escape a couple of nights ago after an attempt at a robbery of a Dust store."

Neo snickered quietly at the memory. "Actually, that reminds me," Harry said. "Why bring in Ruby Rose so early to Beacon? I mean, she's a very competent Huntress, but…"

"I have many reasons, but chief amongst them are her eyes. Haven't you noticed them? Silver eyes."

"And that means what, exactly?" Blake asked. Her tone wasn't sarcastic, just confused, and a little curious, despite herself. Harry and the others shared this curiosity.

"Those with silver eyes are born warriors, warriors the Grimm learn to fear. In time, Ruby will learn what they mean. Her mother had those very eyes herself," Ozpin explained, albeit a little obliquely. Harry got the feeling that there was something else about that he wasn't telling them.

"And her being made the leader of her team?" Harry asked. "She's a bit young, isn't she? I'm not saying Little Miss Schnee should be, and Yang seems a little hot-headed…"

"You would suggest Blake in her stead?" Ozpin asked.

"If only because I know she's up to the task. While I'm unofficially the leader of our group, all of us, well, except for Penny, no offence, Penny…"

"None taken!" Penny chirped. She was very much the junior member of Talon, if only by dint of her lack of combat experience in the field and her general personality.

"Thanks. Anyway, I'd like to think that all of us have leadership potential. Blake, as you may know, led many missions for the White Fang before she defected, Neo I've known for a long time, and she's pretty damn good at plans, and Ilia is a more of a leader when it comes to stealth and infiltration missions."

Ozpin nodded in acknowledgement. "I see. But it is my firm belief that Ruby will need to be a leader soon. Some leaders are born, and others are made. I see potential in her."

"And what about Jaune?" Harry asked.

"I see potential in him too. You may not have noticed it, but he helped plan and direct his team's fight against the Death Stalker. Pressure does make diamonds, as they say."

Neo took out her Scroll, and typed a message. _It also makes garbage more compact. Jaune might have potential, but he's got a long way to go_.

"Yeah, how did he get into Beacon, anyway? He's not wholly incompetent, but…he didn't know anything about Aura or Semblances," Harry mused.

"He faked his transcripts," Ozpin said, bluntly. "Yes, I've known for some time. I accepted him anyway because I had done some discreet investigating before doing so. Most of what you would consider incompetence is more born from his lack of confidence and experience. Indeed, I want you to help him, on the quiet, to become the warrior I know he can become. Miss Nikos certainly sees it that way, I believe, or else she would not have accepted him as a leader."

"Wouldn't that be because she wanted to stay out of the limelight for once?" Ilia asked wryly.

"That too," Ozpin conceded with a chuckle. "She must get tired of being known for winning tournaments and being on cereal boxes." He then turned his attention to Blake. "Miss Belladonna, you haven't had any trouble with Miss Schnee regarding your status as a Faunus?"

"None, thankfully. I haven't spoken of my time either in White Fang or Talon," Blake said. "At the moment, she seems more concerned with Ruby being a leader than my being a Faunus. I think she is wary of me a little, in case I am a White Fang assassin, but other than that…"

"Understandable," Ozpin said. "I heard that there is a growing rift between Jacques Schnee and his youngest daughter. She refuses to be dictated to, and, well, sadly, Jacques Schnee is very much a dictator of his own little fief. One who has been more damaged by the actions of Talon than by White Fang, I believe. Is that due to your de facto commander?"

"Not exactly," Ilia said. "But Winter does play along…most of the time. Grumbling about our lack of discipline and deportment all the while."

Neo tapped into her Scroll, and showed the following message. _She could do to remove the fifty-foot stick up her arse. Even Rusty's not that bad_.

Ozpin, who had been unwisely taking a sip of hot chocolate, all but choked on it, sending hot chocolate spraying everywhere as he spluttered. Whether it was at Neo's assessment of Winter Schnee, or calling General Ironwood 'Rusty', they didn't know. Coughing to clear his throat, he eventually rasped, "Well, in any case, while James does have his issues with how you operate, he sings your praises regardless. And Miss Belladonna, I would appreciate it if you tried to help Weiss bond with her teammates. And also help Ruby become the leader I know she will become."

"Hey, speaking of teammates, how's Blondie?" Harry asked Blake.

"Yang? She's…energetic. I see where Ruby gets it from. However, fair warning: do NOT harm her hair," Blake said. "She is something of a berserker when that happens."

"Hey, there's a point. Rusty sent me a file on those two, and isn't Qrow Branwen their uncle or something?" Harry asked.

"Yes. He's on a mission for me, currently. The information Neopolitan gave us help gave us a lead. Incidentally, he'd like to meet you someday. He claims that he'd love to meet the people who give Ironwood and Winter Schnee ulcers on a daily basis. His words rather than mine."

Harry chuckled. Ironwood and Winter, when relaxing their own deportment, often called Qrow Branwen a 'drunken old scarecrow'. And as loyal as he was to those two, he would love to meet Qrow himself. They'd probably get along like a house on fire. "Maybe. Anyway, we'll play along. Just know that, officially, Rusty's authority supersedes yours, so if your orders conflict with his, we're supposed to go along with his."

"I understand," Ozpin said, picking up on the subtext. Harry was implying that, unofficially, they wouldn't necessarily do so, or at least be flexible. While a little secretive, Ozpin was considerably more genial than Ironwood. "Incidentally, James told me of your abilities, Harry. While I will endeavour not to spread word of them, the truth will probably come out, and your abilities may be coveted by certain parties."

"You mean my magic?" He had explained away his use of magic against the Nevermore yesterday as an unusual use of Dust to Jaune and Pyrrha.

"Yes. Even in a world where Aura and Semblances exist, magic is still coveted. Just be aware that, before long, there'll be people sniffing around, some of them with connections to Salem, even with your sister's help mitigating that. Just be careful to whom you expose your abilities to, and be careful in general."

"I will."

They finished their working breakfast in silence, save for some small talk, before they had to get going to class…

* * *

It was official. Professor Port was easily one of the most boring teachers Harry had ever encountered. Probably the most boring was that ghost teaching history at Hogwarts: at least Port, for all his tedious lectures, could at least tell you something useful, wrapped up in a lot of boring personal anecdotes. And there were one or two lecturers at Atlas who could bore more quickly than Port.

Still, when Port asked for any volunteers to demonstrate that they had the core values of a Hunter, Harry wasn't surprised that Weiss, who seemed to be annoyed at Ruby apparently not paying attention and doodling on her book, volunteered. _Let's see if she can back up her words_ , Harry thought to himself.

Harry knew that Weiss had trained herself to fairly rigorous standards, and she was more than capable of fighting Grimm, as yesterday's initiation showed. Her problem was a certain sense of entitlement, ironic, considering that, from what Winter had told them, she had been trying to get out from that bastard of a father of hers' thumb. Coming to Beacon was a minor act of rebellion by daughter against father.

Well, there was also the fact that she lacked experience. Training, she didn't lack, but experience? Save for Penny, Harry and his friends had more practical experience fighting Grimm than most of the students here combined. What was more, they had practical experience fighting other foes who were equally dangerous, like humans and Faunus. Grimm could get more intelligent the longer they survived, but they generally were less intelligent than humans or Grimm…though what he heard about Salem chilled him to the core.

What little Ironwood and Ozpin had been willing to disclose about her was sobering. An entity, and an ancient one, who was the enemy of all humanity. An entity that controlled the Grimm, though whether she spawned them herself or merely had authority over them, they didn't say, though Ozpin's words hinted that once, she had been human. The little they did know was frightening, to say the least.

Weiss needed to learn how hard the world was outside of her little castle. And just because she was born into privilege did not mean she was king of the castle by default.

He knew the look Neo had as Weiss went down to the small arena for her fight against a Boarbatusk. She was wishing she had some ice cream, or failing that, some popcorn. He knew the feeling.

Weiss didn't do too badly, though she got obstreperous towards Ruby for interrupting the fight with her cheers of encouragement…and her advice to attack the underbelly of the beast. And after she finished, and the class ended, she went off in a huff. Some of it was understandable, given Ruby's rather childish demeanour, but there was more than a little of the spoiled brat about Weiss' demeanour.

Harry and the others followed in time to find Weiss arguing against Ruby. She capped it off by sneering at Ruby, "I deserve better. Ozpin made a mistake."

"Oh? And you think you know better than the headmaster of this place, and a more experienced Hunter than you are, you spoilt brat?" Harry called out.

Weiss whirled to face Harry. "How dare you?!" she snarled.

"No, how dare **_you_** ," Harry said coldly. "Winter would be ashamed of how you're acting. And she had to _earn_ her way to being a leader, despite being born to the Schnee name. You said you deserve better? Get over yourself. You wouldn't last five minutes in the Atlesian military, and you'd last even less in the real world outside your little royal tower, where you'll have not only the Grimm after you, but the White Fang who'd love to get their hands on a Schnee. Ruby is trying to encourage you to do your best, and what do you do?"

"But she's not a leader! She's so…childish!" Weiss spat.

"Hello Pot, my name is Kettle. You're black," Ilia snarked. "Are you really so angry that you didn't get to be the leader of your team? Throwing a tantrum isn't going to get Ozpin to reconsider it."

"Indeed," Ozpin said, coming from behind Ruby, and looking at Weiss, his expression sympathetic. "Miss Schnee…while I have made many mistakes in my lifetime, perhaps more than anyone else on Remnant…my appointment of Ruby is not one of them, I believe. As Ilia stated, no matter how vociferously you complain about it…I won't reconsider it. But do not take this as a slight on your own abilities. While your attitude towards your partner needs improvement, your skills are undeniably superlative. What you need, then, is to hone them, and become, if not the best leader, then the best person you can be." He turned to Ruby. "Ruby…it has only been one day since you have been a leader. You have time to grow into that role. And being a team leader is not just a title that you carry into battle…but a badge you wear constantly. You need to perform at your absolute best, so that others have a reason to follow you." He shot a look at a contrite Weiss as he said the next part. "To be a leader is not a privilege, but a burden, a daunting responsibility. Take some time to consider how to uphold it, Ruby. That is my advice to you."

"See, why couldn't you have said something like that when we first arrived?" Harry complained. "That speech you gave us before…that was depressing."

"Hard truths are sometimes what are needed," Ozpin said. "But your suggestion is noted," he added with a wry smile…

 **CHAPTER 4 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **HPIN and Blake aren't going to be on the best of terms with Weiss for a while. Don't worry, they'll get used to it. The events of the Jaune vs Cardin arc will get somewhat glossed over here.**

 **Review-answering time!** **Guest** **: Nope. Try again.**

 **EmeraldGuardian7** **: Well, good luck with your fic. I pretty much have done the TWT to death (and I also have done** ** _Neopolitan and the Goblet of Fire_** **), so it was best to just have that as background.**

 **hakon2feb** **: While Blake still has a slight tendency to run away from her problems, it's less pronounced here. She has both Harry and Ilia as lovers to support her. In** ** _RWBY_** **canon, she hasn't really known any of the others for long, and while she still doesn't know her teammates in RWBY that much, she doesn't have as big a guilt complex. With Talon, she is hoping to not only reform the White Fang, even if from without, but also find a way to reform the SDC, or at least force them to keep honest. I doubt things will go the same way as they did at the end of Volume 3, but if something does happen in a similar fashion, Blake will at least stick around long enough to say goodbye to Yang and explain her reasons, or even stay around long enough for Yang to persuade her to come with her. The main pairing will remain strictly Harry/Blake/Ilia, but there may be others. Certainly, I'm hoping to have Jaune and Pyrrha have a proper relationship that may actually survive. Dunno about any others. Weiss and Hermione may bond when Hermione makes an appearance, and given comments in the next chapter, we might have some Baked Alaska on the way…**

 **No numbered annotations this time.**


	6. Chapter 5: A Cardinal Mistake and a

**CHAPTER 5:**

 **A CARDINAL MISTAKE AND A BAKED ALASKA**

The next day, just before breakfast, Harry and Neo approached Jaune (Ilia going to socialise with Blake, as well as work out arrangements on how to sneak into Harry's dorms, and Penny going to socialise with Ruby). This meant having to draw him away from Cardin Winchester, who was bullying him, but Cardin, apparently recognising that Team HPIN were a little more than he could handle, went off. "What was he doing?" Harry asked. As Jaune opened his mouth to protest, Harry held up a hand. "And please, don't bullshit me Jaune. I've been bullied enough times to know when it happens."

Jaune grimaced, and looked away. "It's none of your business," he muttered sullenly.

"Hey, you're a team leader now, just like me. You're a colleague and a comrade, like Ruby…though I'm not sure I can like Cardin," Harry said. "Anyway, me and Neo wanted to have a little chinwag with you. Well, I'll be doing the talking. My little sister doesn't talk much, and even then, it's only through Scroll messages or body language. But, well…I want to help you."

Jaune seemed torn between rejecting it outright, and accepting, before resignedly plonking himself down onto a bench nearby. Harry sat down, as did Neo, the former waving a hand and causing privacy charms to be set up. "Hey, what did you do?" Jaune asked.

"Set up things so nobody can hear us," Harry said. "After all, you don't want anyone else to hear this, or at least not Cardin and his ilk. Your teammates will be more forgiving."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Jaune said.

"Isn't that what people who are guilty say to these things? Bluntly, Jaune, we know you faked your transcripts to get into Beacon. What's more, Ozpin knows." As Jaune shot to his feet, Harry followed, and put a hand on his shoulder. "Sit. _Down. NOW_. I am not going to blackmail you or extort anything from you, Jaune. What's the point, anyway, if Ozpin already knows? He's keeping you here because he sees the potential in you. Neo and I are here to offer help."

Jaune, after a moment, said, "I don't need any help. I want to be the hero, not the damsel in distress."

"Excuse me? Given how well you did in that initiation exam, something that could have killed you, you did pretty damn well just surviving for a noob, let alone leading your team to victory," Harry scoffed. "Yes, you're a liability…for now. But do you think Ozpin would have made you leader of JNPR if he didn't see some potential in you? And you saw what he did when Weiss had her little hissy fit yesterday. Jaune, Neo and I, along with Ilia, Penny and Blake have been through the best training Atlas had to offer, along with our own training. Do you think any of us got better on our own? Look, I can't force you into accepting help from any of us, but don't forget, you're on a team with Pyrrha Nikos, a veritable prodigy when it comes to combat. Don't be afraid to ask for help."

Jaune seemed uncertain, but he closed his eyes. "I need to think about this."

"Fine. We're not going to say anything about your transcripts or lack thereof. That's up to you to tell that to your teammates or anyone else. But you'll have to tell them sooner or later," Harry said. "I think they'll understand, even Pyrrha. Besides, if you get up to scratch quickly enough, you can enter the tournament at the Vytal Festival a few months from now. You can make yourself really known then…"

* * *

After breakfast was combat training with Glynda, and after asking for volunteers, Glynda got a couple: Harry, Yang, Neo and Cardin. And Harry knew why Cardin wanted to fight him: Harry had told him off for pulling at the ears of a rabbit Faunus called Velvet at breakfast, and Harry had obliquely called him out on his bullying of Jaune. And it seemed that Harry was going to take him to school. Namely, the School of Hard Knocks.

Harry left Gabriel with his teammates, but had Walter ready. "You're pretty cocky, coming at me with only one weapon," Cardin said.

"I only need one," Harry said. Besides, Gabriel was not good for fighting humans unless it was to the death, and his other weapon was still being rebuilt at Atlas. Though apparently it would be ready in time to come over with the others.

"Just 'cause you're from Atlas doesn't make you top of the heap," Cardin retorted.

"Of course it doesn't. I can name half a dozen people better than me here at Beacon alone." Harry grinned widely. "What's _your_ name, by the way?"

"Animal lover," Cardin growled, not quite under his breath.

"Enough. Remember, you are to fight only until your Aura levels sink into the red," Goodwitch said.

Harry's grin only seemed to widen at that…

* * *

"Umm, Blake?" Ruby asked quietly. "Why is Harry smiling like that? He's creeping me out."

"He gets like that sometimes," Blake said. "While he is no fan of what White Fang has become, he absolutely detests Faunus-haters. He had a habit of making an example of them back in Atlas."

Weiss frowned. While there was no love lost between her and the dark-haired boy, and she wasn't the most fond of Faunus, she recognised his skill if nothing else. "This is not going to go well for Winchester, is it?" she asked.

"The last time he did this, he used Walter to make his example dance like a puppet to a song he learned somewhere. Something called _I've Got No Strings(_ _1)_."

The sound of fast-paced music, tinny and electronic, filled the air, much to Glynda's bemusement. Yang looked over to see Neo smirking as the music came from her Scroll. "Umm, what's that?"

"I believe it is the soundtrack to a video game we encountered during a mission," Penny said. "It's called the Vega Stage theme from _Street Fighter II_. Neo seems to believe that Harry will be playing matador."

"And Cardin's the bull," Yang realised. Neo nodded, a vicious smirk playing about her lips.

And it was true, Harry was dodging Cardin's attacks with ease. " _Olé!_ " he yelled at one point.

"Stop dodging so I can hit you!" Cardin roared after one dodge too many, panting, only for Harry to use Walter to snatch the mace from him.

"With what?" Harry asked, dangling the mace from the wires. "And dodging to avoid damage is a valid tactic. You ever box, old chap?"

"I'll smash your face in!" Cardin roared, before charging, only for Harry to keep dodging, swatting him lightly with the mace, still entangled in the wires.

Yang, however, caught on. "Blake, does Harry box?"

"Not exactly," Blake said, "but I know what you're talking about. Cardin's more of a Slugger…and Harry is acting like an Outboxer."

"Huh?" Ruby and Weiss asked simultaneously.

"There's what you might call a 'Triangle Theory' in boxing. Amongst three of the four particular styles of boxing, Slugger, Outboxer, and Swarmer, there's a sort of rock-paper-scissors thing going on. Here, Cardin is acting as a Slugger, going in for powerful, but slow and predictable attacks, while Harry is focussing on evasion and taking advantage of openings, like an Outboxer," Yang explained(2).

"So, an Outboxer wins against a Slugger?" Ruby asked.

"Not always, it's not a hard and fast rule. But Outboxers generally have the advantage over Sluggers."

Soon, Harry had tired of his little dance, and had flung the mace back at Cardin, hitting him in the stomach. As Cardin got to his feet, mace at the ready, Harry used his wires to entangle him, and then start hitting himself in the head with his own mace. "I'm guessing you're one of those types who hit people with their own hands or fists and told them to 'stop hitting yourself'," Harry said with a cold smile. "How does it feel to be on the receiving end?"

Cardin's expletive was cut short when the mace hit him again. Harry glanced at his Aura level, and shrugged. "Well, you're in the red. I guess we're done here." He released Cardin from the wires of Walter, though kept them at the ready, in case Cardin had the idea to attack him. Instead, Cardin just glared at him, silently promising revenge, before stalking off.

Glynda cleared her throat. "Will Miss Xiao Long and Miss Neo make their way to the arena?"

"All right!" Yang grinned, bumping her fists together. Neo smirked.

* * *

Harry sat near Ruby and Penny this time. "Sis has got this in the bag," Ruby said.

"Don't be so sure," Harry said. "Yang's a damned good fighter, but Neo's better than she looks, and she's fought opponents who specialise in hand-to-hand like your sister does. Besides, Neo's only about your age, and you wouldn't like anyone saying you can't fight."

Ruby had to concede that point. And Harry was amused to see that Neo, once they got down into the arena, walked confrontationally close to Yang, smirking at her. Yang, rather predictably, lashed out with Ember Celica, only to have the blast blocked by the Pernicious Parasol(3), Neo's weapon.

What followed was a somewhat one-sided fight. While Yang was strong and skilled, Neo was able to evade the attacks, all but dancing to evade the attacks, and further provoking Yang's ire. And when Yang got one good shot in, Neo merely seemed to shatter like glass, only to appear right behind Yang, and kicked her hard into the wall.

Yang picked herself up, before snarling, a flame-like aura briefly bursting into life around her, her eyes going from lilac to red. "That must be her Semblance," Penny remarked.

Ruby nodded, smiling. "The more damage she takes, the more she can dish back."

"But she's also getting more angry," Harry said. "And if you get too angry without thinking clearly…"

Neo did have a little more trouble dealing with Yang after Yang used her Semblance, with Neo being forced to use her own Semblance, Suigetsu(4), more often. But soon, Neo had managed to knock Yang into the red, and Glynda declared the match over, Yang trying to get back to her feet…only for Neo to skip over, and offer her hand.

Yang stared at it, before the rage cleared from her face, and she gave a grin. "Great workout, Neo," she said, allowing Neo to help her to her feet. "We should do this more often! That was great!"

"Don't flirt with my sister, Yang!" Harry called out impishly, to uproarious laughter from the rest of the class. Neo poked his tongue out at him, while Yang laughed along with them. It was clear that there was no real bad blood between the two combatants, unlike in the previous match.

"So, what was that Semblance?" Ruby asked, frowning in a rather cute manner.

"Neo calls it Suigetsu, after something she read somewhere. Basically, she has power over illusions of many kinds, combined with a form of teleportation," Harry explained. "She can disguise herself, she can create illusions as decoys to escape or better position herself…so, as you saw, it's handy in battle. Actually, your sister's Semblance reminds me of someone else's Semblance."

"And who's that?"

Blake, who was sitting not far away, said, "Adam Taurus, one of the top fighters of White Fang. We've had the misfortune of encountering him before."

Weiss, also not sitting far away, frowned. "I have heard of him. One of his most recent crimes was orchestrating a Dust robbery on one of our trains passing through Forever Fall…and murdering the crew."

"His Semblance allows him to absorb damage, like Yang," Blake said as Yang and Neo took their seats. "But rather than channelling the power to raise his power, he channels it, via his own weapons, into a single attack, capable of tearing through an Atlesian armoured mecha suit like the proverbial hot knife through butter. He calls it the Moonslice."

"Yeesh, that sounds nasty," Yang said.

"It is."

* * *

Later that night, Yang was smirking at Blake as she prepared to leave RWBY's dorm. "Off visiting your boyfriend?" she asked.

Blake rolled her golden eyes. Not that Yang knew that she was also visiting Ilia. "And?"

"Just saying, go for it," Yang said, grinning, and giving her a thumbs-up. "And tell Neo, I wanna have a rematch sometime, okay? I want to find a way to beat her."

"I'll let her know," Blake said, before she snuck out.

"If she gets caught, I'm blaming you for encouraging her," Weiss said as she studied a textbook. "I'm sure there's some rule preventing fraternisation between students beyond a certain point. I am given to believe they can wait until they can head to Vale or something. I believe they call such establishments 'love hotels'."

Ruby, sitting on her bunk bed, looked at Yang in confusion. The blonde sighed, shaking her head at her kid sister. While Ruby had been given The Talk by Taiyang and Qrow (the latter doing so in a very embarrassing manner, thanks to his drinking), she was still a bit of an innocent abroad when it came to innuendo and euphemisms. "Weiss, given what I've seen of Harry so far, she's lucky to have him as a boyfriend. I'm a little jealous, really."

"I'm not," Weiss said huffily. Harry's diatribe against her still stung, and while she was willing to be civil, and was trying to improve herself on Ozpin's advice, at best, he was a comrade and a hunter. She doubted they'd be friends. Then, her features softened. "I am happy for her, though. I'm sure that if I ever found a boyfriend, Father would find him wholly unsuitable, unless he was ridiculously rich or well-connected. Both, for preference. As it is, I doubt I would find such a thing at Beacon. He would consider anyone attending this to be plebeian."

"What-ian?" Ruby asked.

"Lower class, beneath their station," Yang translated. "Weiss, we don't speak posh rich heiress. We didn't attend expensive classes for…what is it called? Elocution?"

Weiss scoffed. "Of course."

"But do you need it to be a Hunter?" Ruby asked.

"You need it when you're a Schnee," Weiss said. "It's expected of us." She pursed her lips in contemplation. "Privilege comes with its own hazards. I came here to make my own way."

"Hey, you will," Ruby said. "They'll be remembering Weiss Schnee, the kickass Huntress! I promise you that!"

Weiss emitted an irritated grunt, but Yang noticed the faint smile that flitted briefly across Weiss' lips. And Yang knew that Weiss was now beginning to accept Ruby as a leader. It was only tentative, but then again, her kid sister knew how to try and help people.

Yang thought back to her fight earlier today against Neopolitan. Yang had to admit, that was probably one of the worst showings she ever had against a human opponent. In the end, though, it was just as well that was a spar. Neo had beaten her…and Yang realised that it was a wake-up call. After all, there were times when they'd have to fight against human or Faunus opponents, and as much as Yang liked to think she was strong enough to handle anything, Neo had disproved that little notion.

Okay, so she was a transfer from Atlas. So she, along with Blake and HPIN, already had some kickass training. But still, while she had used her father and uncle as a yardstick to surpass, Neo might be a better one, or at least one of those she could use to help her get stronger. That bloody Semblance was way OP, though.

Yang grinned to herself. Normally, she would be irritated at her loss, but actually, she was excited. This was yet another step to being the best she could be…

 **CHAPTER 5 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, Harry's put Cardin in his place, and Yang and Neo have had their own fight, with a similar outcome…but not as much bad feeling afterwards. Oh, and Harry's made Jaune an offer.**

 **I very nearly had Harry humiliating Cardin to an improvised version of** ** _Stronger Than You_** **(based on the version sung by Sans from** ** _Undertale_** **), but modifying the lyrics to suit the fight was tricky, and I felt it detracted from the fight. So, instead, he has Neo play the Vega stage theme from** ** _Street Fighter II_** **. I'd like to imagine that, during downtime during the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Harry and company went to London, and bought some technology, including a SNES.**

 **Review-answering time!** **Fog Repair Ship Akashi** **: I hope to ensure Pyrrha's survival.**

 **Thedarkness1996** **: Yang's not going to be added to the mix. But if you want a Harry/Yang story, well, I should plug whitetigerwolf's** ** _For Death's Amusement_** **, where a post-Book 7 Harry is sent to a post-Volume 3 Yang. It's pretty contrived, but it's sweet to see them helping each other heal.**

 **DocSlendy** **: She isn't happy with it.**

 **hakon2feb** **: While they may seem arrogant by comparison, keep in mind that, by this point, HPIN and Blake are at a much stronger level than most Beacon students. They've been tested time and again on missions for Ironwood. Their arrogance was not intentionally-written, though. Harry doesn't have much time for Weiss, partly because he detests her father, and partly because he views her as a poor copy of her sister, a woman he respects (even if he can't resist making digs at her expense). He sees her potential, and hopes she can become a better person, but, well, he met Malfoy back on Earth, and can't help but mentally compare her somewhat to Malfoy.**

 **1\. If you wonder what this is, this is a song from the Disney film version of** ** _Pinocchio_** **. Ultron sings it in** ** _The Avengers: Age of Ultron_** **.**

 **2\. Now, I have virtually no interest in boxing, but after watching the** ** _Death Battle_** **episode focusing on** ** _Balrog vs TJ Combo_** **, I found that this Triangle Theory was actually quite interesting. It points out that this theory is only a theory, but does hold weight to a degree. Incidentally, Balrog was a Slugger, and TJ Combo an Outboxer. I had to admit, I loved that episode. Of course, Harry and Cardin aren't boxing, and Harry's fighting style is more variable, but I'd imagine Harry would work on evading Cardin and tiring him out before, well, humiliating him.**

 **3\. In my (published) crossover** ** _Neopolitan and the Goblet of Fire_** **, this is what I name Neo's umbrella weapon.**

 **4\. I don't know whether people have noticed this, but shattering illusions? Doesn't Neo's power seem a LOT like Aizen's from** ** _Bleach_** **? Hence my naming her power after Aizen's Zanpakuto.**


	7. Chapter 6: How to Train Your Jaune

**CHAPTER 6:**

 **HOW TO TRAIN YOUR JAUNE**

Team HPIN looked on as Pyrrha corrected Jaune's swinging. It seemed that, after some thought, the blonde had swallowed his pride, what there was of it, and had approached Pyrrha and Harry, confessing his forging transcripts to Pyrrha, who accepted him regardless. Harry deferred to Pyrrha most of the time, though, as her fighting style, using a spear and rifle combo called Milo, and a shield called Akouo, was similar to the sword and shield combo that Jaune wanted to fight with.

"The problem I see," Harry remarked, "is that your sword and shield don't have a gun built in, so your long-range abilities are relatively limited."

Pyrrha frowned, as Jaune continued his practise swings. "I studied your team, Harry, and Ilia and Neo don't exactly have long range weaponry."

"They work to compensate, and we try to work as a team anyway," Harry said.

Ilia nodded, as did Neo, with the chameleon Faunus saying, "My whip, Crossland(1), has a longer range than you'd think. Besides, Harry's crossbow is not his usual long range weapon. It got all but destroyed, so it's being reconstructed."

"I see."

Team HPIN continued watching Jaune going through the motions. Harry had had an enjoyable last couple of nights, when he, Blake, and Ilia went into the trunk he had purchased in Diagon Alley. It was effectively a mansion within the trunk, and they made full use of the bedroom.

Harry smiled to himself at the thought. He was lucky to have the love of two women, who were willing to share him (although with Ilia, it was more that she was willing to share Blake and sleep with Harry than she was willing to share Harry and sleep with Blake). He'd like to think that he helped keep them out of darkness, giving Blake a reason to escape the White Fang after failing to keep it from degenerating into terrorism, and Ilia a reason to avoid joining them in the first place.

Blake, he had met when he and Neo, after fleeing their orphanage, settled for a time in Menagerie. While humans were treated warily, a pair of children were less likely to be treated with suspicion, and it was there that they fell in with the Belladonnas. Blake had been his first friend (Neo he had adopted as a little sister), and he treasured that. In fact, it was a disappointment for all parties when they left for Atlas, intending to go their own way in dealing with the troubles there, and Blake decided to stay on with White Fang.

Harry and Neo acted as vigilantes. They targeted some of the groups who targeted Faunus, like the thugs the SDC employed on the quiet to break up any protests against the SDC's working conditions. They later found that Jacques had a bad habit of hiring or coercing some of his Faunus workers to participate in false flag operations against the White Fang, operations that had led, eventually, to Sienna Khan ousting Ghira Belladonna…and accusations of terrorism changed to _acts_ of terrorism.

In any case, Harry and Neo acted as vigilantes against the anti-Faunus groups, even crossing paths with Roman Torchwick once when one of his schemes brought him to Atlas…only to get caught when they inadvertently disrupted an operation by a then-nascent special ops group. Namely, Talon. Talon was understaffed and underfunded at the time…but Harry and Neo, after being given the offer they couldn't refuse, eventually joined Talon. Sometime after, Blake left the White Fang and joined Harry and Neo, only joining Talon when Harry and Neo, along with Ironwood and Winter Schnee made it clear that the SDC would be as much a target of Talon's investigations as White Fang.

Harry and Neo had made the acquaintance of Doctor Pollendina during their time earlier, and Penny's first gynoid body was created at about the time that Blake joined Talon. It was shortly afterwards that they met Ilia, then a recruit in the mainstream Atlesian Academy. She had been hiding her Faunus nature, but Harry and Neo had helped her parents escape some thugs hired by the SDC before (her parents had been trying to organise a union amongst the Faunus Dust miners), and they knew she was a chameleon Faunus. So too did Ironwood, and he extended an invitation for her to join Talon once she finished her training.

She very nearly didn't when her parents died, when her skin turned blue with grief. When her comrades turned into enemies, and mocked and jeered her. Harry had been nearby, as had Blake, and they managed to calm her down enough that she avoided punching the bullies' teeth in…though Blake shut them up by removing her bow to reveal her ears…and Winter, who arrived shortly afterwards, reprimanded those other trainees harshly.

Ilia soon fit in with the maverick group of Talon. Between Harry and Neo's acceptance of Faunus, Blake's empathy for Ilia's plight, and Penny's desire to make friends, Ilia felt welcome. And from there…well, he was very lucky when Ilia confessed her love to Blake, and admitted she was willing to share with Harry. Blake was somewhat bemused by the whole thing, but rolled with it. The quiet girl didn't have many friends, and she accepted their affections, despite the whole polyamory thing.

The chameleon Faunus pursed her lips as she watched. "We'll also need to train him up physically. He's fit for a normal person, but Hunters need to be even more so, even with Aura enhancing them."

"We'll work on that," Pyrrha said, a smirk playing about her features. "I have an idea involving Nora and her hammer."

"Given her energy and…eccentric demeanour," Penny opined, "I presume it is an endurance and agility test?"

"You could say that. Actually, maybe I could get Ruby Rose to help if she's not busy. I saw how she fought at times in the Emerald Forest. That Semblance of hers is pretty fast."

"I'll ask her!" Penny said. "Ruby and I are great friends!"

Pyrrha chuckled. Jaune paused in his sword-swinging, and looked at Harry. "Does she mind having more friends?"

"Penny? No, she loves making new friends, don't you?"

"Of course!" the gynoid chirped. "I hope I can be friends with everyone on Team JNPR."

* * *

They continued for a little while longer. Later, they found themselves in Professor Oobleck's class. Harry had to admit, Oobleck was…interesting, for a history professor. He zoomed around like a fly on caffeine, all but teleporting around the classroom, and certainly spoke very fast, his wild shock of green hair looking perpetually windblown. He certainly put Port to shame, despite the somewhat tedious material, even though the subject matter was on the history of the Faunus.

Poor Jaune was distracted enough to miss Oobleck's question (how some general or other got defeated by a force of Faunus during the battle of Fort Castle), and got it wrong, and Cardin, when asked, made some snide remark about it being easier to train animals. Harry thought inwardly that, given that he had given Cardin something of a beating earlier and he hadn't learned his lesson, it only showed that Cardin was certainly harder to train than an animal. He was still targeting Jaune and some of the Faunus like Velvet.

Oobleck scowled, and Pyrrha said, "Not the most open-minded of people, are you, Cardin?"

"You've got a problem?" Cardin snarled.

"Four of them, actually," Ilia snarked.

"Then, Miss Amitola, would you like to state how the Faunus beat General Lagune?" Oobleck asked.

"Certainly. It boils down to a number of key factors. Three spring immediately to mind. The first was that the Faunus were far more familiar with the terrain of the battlefield than Lagune. The second was that Lagune attempted to catch his enemy unawares in a surprise attack at night, but many Faunus have near-perfect eyesight in the dark. Thirdly, Lagune lacked experience, having been advanced through the ranks due to his wealth and political connections rather than his skill as a military commander. Hence why, even with a numerically superior force, Lagune lost, and was captured by the Faunus." She then shot Cardin a smug smile that screamed, _Fuck you and the horse you rode in on, you racist bastard_. Cardin was far from amused, growling like the very animals he disdained. "Intelligence wins as many battles as brute force does, and some people clearly lacked the nous to stay at school."

Cardin, getting her implication, shot up from his seat with a snarl, slamming the desk with his fists, but Oobleck berated him. Thankfully, Jaune managed to keep himself from laughing at Cardin's humiliation, as that might have had him join Cardin in seeing Oobleck after class.

* * *

"Oum, can you believe him?" Harry complained to his teammates, as well as RWBY and JNPR, as they walked away from the lecture hall. "Easier to train animals?"

"I agree," Weiss said, her face twisted in contempt. "What is his problem?"

"The Winchesters have a seat on the Vale Council," Ilia said, crossing her arms. "And they're big business here."

"Hmph. I may have issues with some Faunus like those part of the White Fang, but that remark went beyond the pale," Weiss said. Then, her expression became thoughtful. "Blake, do you have good night vision?"

The cat Faunus nodded. "So does Ilia."

"That ought to be handy on a mission," Ruby said, catching onto what Weiss was getting at.

"Yes, never underestimate the utility of simple skills like that," Pyrrha said, particularly for Jaune's sake.

"I'll try not to," Jaune said. "But seriously, buying your way into being a general? That's stupid."

"Unfortunately, stupidity's a common ailment," Ren said quietly.

"Like Apancakia!" Nora said. "The condition of having no pancakes!"

In the silence that followed, Ren said, "She's like that."

"Say no more," Harry said. "I once met this girl called Luna Lovegood not so long ago. I get a sneaking suspicion that they'd get along like the proverbial house on fire…and with probably as much property damage…"

* * *

"… _Cause quite a lot of damage, property or otherwise, should these backdoors be used_ ," Ironwood scowled on the videolink feed. " _At best, I can only upgrade the military's systems on the quiet: the idiots we have for politicians here think that cyberwarfare is only a remote possibility, despite what Penny and Neopolitan have done at times to hack into the systems of the SDC and other organisations._ "

"Then it's a good thing Neopolitan notified us of these, and of Dr Watts' alliance with Salem, and through Watts, they have leverage on Leonardo," Ozpin said. "I hate having to keep Leonardo out of the loop. We need to find a way to break their hold on him without tipping our hand."

" _I'm already on it_ ," Ironwood said. " _I have another team from Talon looking discreetly into Watts' affairs. If need be…we'll remove him, and find a way to free Lionheart. I'm more worried about Salem herself, as well as any other associates she has. Finding them won't be easy. They'd be more likely to stick close to Salem, and we only have a very rough idea of where her base of operations is._ "

"And her power in her base of operations is, if not absolute, then too powerful for any of us to deal with at this time. She has shifted her bases around frequently." Ozpin sipped pensively at his hot chocolate, cursing, not for the first time, at the gods for inflicting immortality as punishment for not stopping Salem. While it was true he didn't want to rest until Salem had been dealt with, it was another matter when you weren't told how to put paid to her for good. And the way he reincarnated was troublesome, what with his soul fusing with some poor sod his curse chooses. "James, while we have been over this, the thing that worries me is that Salem and her associates have a very opportune moment to strike, during the Vytal Festival. That would cause the chaos she delights in creating, in order to allow the Grimm to wreak havoc, for they are attracted to negative emotion, including war and attacks. With Torchwick increasing his activities, and working with the White Fang, we may need to step up our game."

" _That's what those troublemakers I sent you are there for, Ozpin_ ," Ironwood said. " _Point them at the enemy, light the fuse and run like hell in the other direction. Between them and Taiyang's girls, I'm sure you have everything you need for now. They may make a mess, but they get results with a minimum of casualties…well, to allies and civilians. I'm currently getting some civilians from Earth up to scratch._ "

Yes, Earth. Ozpin knew thanks to Ironwood that Harry came from another world originally, one where magic, while still rare, was more common. "These are the ones with the same abilities as Harry, correct?"

" _Yes. Sirius Black is an unrepentant troublemaker, and he reminds me altogether too much of Branwen for my liking, but like Branwen, he is also very skilled, even if I am loath to admit that. He just needs to learn how to combat Grimm our way. He used to be…something like a wizard SWAT team. He should also learn not to annoy Winter. She very nearly neutered him. Remus Lupin and Hermione Granger are sponges of information. And while not mages, Granger's parents are useful. Her father used to be in the military on their homeworld. In any case, I will be keeping Black here for now, but Lupin and Granger will be sent to Beacon before long._ "

Ozpin nodded. "Any help would be appreciated. Remember, Salem favours a divide and conquer approach. I'll talk to Qrow. He may be able to focus his own investigations better now that we have this information."

" _Then let's hope that we can stymie Salem before whatever she and her cronies plan comes to pass_ …"

 **CHAPTER 6 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, Harry and company are helping out Jaune, Ozpin and Ironwood are making plans, and Cardin got owned. Again.**

 **I rewrote part of Harry's musings about Blake and Ilia to reflect the recent reveal in** ** _RWBY_** **that Ilia was in love with Blake. As noted in a previous chapter, for the sake of this story, Ilia is bi, but she is more into Blake. Harry…she has more of a friends-with-benefits thing going, and she's willing to share. It may not sound like much of a difference, but it does change the focus of the relationship somewhat.**

 **Review-answering time!** **DocSlendy** **: As Talon works to improve Faunus' rights (albeit covertly) within Atlas, Hermione is not going to found any such organisation, though she will be participating in some of the existing ones.**

 **Nine Lives Bladeworks** **: True, but here, Ilia is not a** ** _yandere_** **. Thanks to her friendship with those within Talon, her psyche is more stable.**

 **Celestia GF of the Void** **: You know what? I might seriously consider a Nuts and Dolts relationship. Ruby and Penny would be so cute together.**

 **OBSERVER01** **: In canon, the first time Yang and Neo fight is because they're enemies. I think Yang, at least while in school, would be confident enough to accept that, not only are there people stronger or more skilled than she is, but she can learn from them. Neo rammed that home, and Yang accepted that. Keep in mind that Yang IS still highly skilled, but her Semblance relies somewhat on her anger, as does her strength, so in a way, this was a lesson to her (and one that didn't cost a limb or consciousness) to find other ways of dealing with opponents like Neo. And I may just do a Baked Alaska pairing…**

 **Guest (regarding a crossover with** ** _Final Fantasy VII_** **)** **: Not going to happen. Also,** ** _read my profile_** **, as I DO NOT ACCEPT UNSOLICITED STORY IDEAS! Goddammit, how many times do I have to say it?!**

 **Guest (regarding the reference I forgot)** **: Hey, it's been years since I've watched any of the** ** _Back to the Future_** **films. I didn't remember that bit. I was more in mind of Frieza saying the same thing to Vegeta as he hit him, and when Vegeta protests that Frieza was the one hitting him, Frieza coldly retorts that Vegeta brought it upon himself.**

 **1\. Ilia's weapon doesn't have a canonical name yet, but I decided to name her weapon after a character from the** ** _Doctor Who_** **story** ** _The Faceless Ones_** **. Crossland is the name of a police officer investigating the disappearances of young men and women on a budget airline…run by aliens called the Chameleons, who take on their appearances. In addition, Crossland's appearance is stolen by the leader of the Chameleons. Given that Ilia is a chameleon Faunus, I thought this appropriate, especially as the Chameleons were one of the first alien enemies in** ** _Doctor Who_** **to be given relatively complex and sympathetic motives (thanks probably in part to co-writer Malcolm Hulke, who would go on to create the Silurians and the Draconians, two other** ** _Doctor Who_** **monsters with similar attributes).**


	8. Chapter 7: Dark Clouds

**CHAPTER 7:**

 **DARK CLOUDS**

Neo had to report to Roman in person, and she took the opportunity to do so when there was a weekend, and they were allowed to take a trip to Vale. Teams RWBY, JNPR, and HPIN (sans Neo) were travelling together as they went down the streets of Vale. After passing a certain Dust store, Ruby regaled them with an anecdote on how she got accepted into Beacon: by foiling a Dust robbery by Roman Torchwick.

When her tale ended, Harry gave Ruby a look. "I think I can understand why Glynda got angry with you. Roman's not someone you want to screw around with. In fact, I'd say he was taking it easy on you up until he got on the Bullhead."

Ruby looked askance at him. "Why do you say that?"

"Let's just say we've studied how Roman Torchwick can fight," Blake said, not mentioning that it was Neo who got most of the intelligence on that. "Even outside the Vale, he's pretty infamous. He even uses a form of Bartitsu for fighting(1). And that's without going into that woman who attacked you. Oh, there's a shop run by an old friend of my father's down the street."

"A Faunus?" Weiss asked. Over the past little while, relations between her and HPIN were getting better, partly thanks to Ozpin's pep talk and Blake acting as a peacekeeper between Harry and Weiss. And while Weiss still retained her wariness of Faunus, in case they were members of the White Fang (a not unreasonable fear, given her family's company), she judged things on a case-by-case basis, especially now.

"Yeah. Old Tukson runs a bookshop here in Vale," Harry said, indicating the store that was further down the street. "Claims to have every book under the sun, but that's the usual retail hyperbole. Neo and I used to live for a time with the Belladonnas, and we read a lot from the store he owned there at the time. He packed up and moved from Menagerie to Vale when his wife got killed by a Grimm."

Which was true, but only partially so. Tukson's wife actually had been left to die at the claws of some Grimm by bandits who had been employed by the SDC to harass any Faunus suspected of being part of the White Fang…and both Tukson and his wife had been part of it when Ghira Belladonna was still in charge. Until recently, Tukson had still been part of White Fang under Sienna Khan, but after seeing how it was degenerating into terrorism with her in charge, especially with people like Adam Taurus involved, he began acting as Talon's contact within Vale, particularly on any White Fang activity.

Hence why they were visiting. To everyone else in RWBY and JNPR, it was going to be childhood friends coming to meet an old friend. But for HPIN and Blake, it was collecting intel that might be too sensitive to send between Scrolls, at least not without using the encryption Ozpin and Ironwood used. And Tukson would be dead if his former allies in White Fang discovered a Scroll with top of the line Atlas encryption. That was a real red flag right there. Okay, having a group of Hunters, four of which with strong connections to Ironwood, was also a risk, but Tukson could play that off as having known Harry and Blake from Menagerie.

Weiss seemed mollified. While not as avid a reader as some others (like Ruby, Blake, Harry and Ilia, though they paled in comparison to that witch Hermione Granger they had encountered on Earth), she still appreciated a good book. She had even borrowed Blake's copy of _The Man With Two Souls_.

As they made their way to Tukson's Book Trade, Yang had Harry hang back. "Hey, Harry. I wanted to ask you something. Is there anything more you can tell me about Raven?"

"Not much more, even in the stuff that's classified," Harry said. "Why do you ask?"

"I managed to contact my uncle. I told him what you told me, and he said it was pretty much spot-on. He's apparently heard of you, and wants to, and I quote, ' _meet the guy that gives Ironwood an ulcer_ '."

"I'm sure he would," Harry chuckled. "I've wanted to meet Qrow for a while myself. Ironwood isn't so bad, he's just stiff and military, and tends to be paranoid about things. Not without reason, though. Anyway, the upshot is, Yang, from what I've heard about your birth mother, you're way better than she is, in terms of character. You actually give a damn about people. Skillwise? Well, maybe not, she is a much more experienced Huntress, after all, and where she lives is hard and wild country, and she's part of a hard and wild people. But you are better where it counts. Anyway, you shouldn't bother seeking her out. People like her know how to hide from those looking for them. It's more likely she will seek you out, if she does at all."

"Well, what about you? Wouldn't you want to know about your parents?"

Ilia, who had been lingering nearby, said, "They were murdered when Harry was only a year old."

Yang put her hands to her mouth in dismay. "Oh Oum, I'm sorry, I…"

"No, it's fine. A long time, I spent with relatives who claimed they were drunkards who died in a car crash. As it turned out…well, they were actually skilled Hunters who died dealing with a terrorist. Eventually, I ended up at an orphanage where I met Neo. Not so long ago, I finally learned more about them, but to me…my parents are abstracts. Neo's the closest thing I have to family, even if she isn't a blood relation, and Penny is like a younger sister as well." He looked over at the redheaded gynoid, who was holding forth in some discussion with Ruby, Jaune and Pyrrha. "I never even knew my parents. I don't know whether that makes me fortunate or not. I didn't even have the pain of remembering enough to mourn them."

"Whereas I do," Ilia said. "My parents died in a Dust mine collapse. Harry and Blake were there for me when nobody else was. And I'm grateful for it. This is my family, in a way, now that my parents are gone."

"Yeesh. And sometimes, I thought I had it bad when my birth mother went AWOL, and my Mum disappeared on a mission," Yang said solemnly. "At least I had Dad and Uncle Qrow, even if they weren't around as much as I'd like."

"It happens on Remnant," Ilia said. "Between Grimm, bandits, accidents and terrorism, it's not surprising some of us have tales like that…"

* * *

To his credit, Tukson didn't bat an eyelid when Harry, Ilia, Penny and Blake turned up, even with the Schnee heiress in tow. Oh, he looked a little bemused, but he recovered well, and he pointed out where some of the books Weiss wanted were. He invited Harry and Blake into the backroom, on the pretence that he wanted to catch up with old friends while the others browsed.

Once the door was secured, though, Tukson's expression became tense and worried. Even after greetings and niceties were exchanged, Tukson remained tense. And he soon explained why. "There's more activity here in Vale of the Fang. Those idiots have managed to get themselves working for Torchwick, though you probably know that already, given how close you are to Neo. And you probably know he's working under some woman called Cinder."

"Yeah, we know that," Harry said.

"Well, there's more. Cinder's been sending a couple of underlings to bring orders. Mostly helping out White Fang members, but I think they're beginning to suspect me. And those kids of hers don't care about who they hurt."

"Kids?" Blake asked.

Tukson nodded, and handed them a couple of pictures. "I discreetly took pictures of them with my Scroll and had them printed."

Harry studied them. One showed a dark-skinned girl about his age with light green hair, and wearing a very skimpy outfit. The other was a silver-haired boy with a cocky demeanour. He frowned when he saw the boy. He looked vaguely familiar, in terms of facial features. As he handed the pictures to Blake, he asked, "So, they have names?"

"The boy's Mercury Black, and the girl's Emerald Sustrai."

The name 'Black' had a few connotations in Harry's mind. It was the surname of his godfather, as he recently learned, but it was also…oh, so _that's_ why his face looked familiar. "Any relation to Marcus Black, the infamous assassin?"

"I never asked, but I wouldn't be surprised. Kid looks and acts too much like him," Tukson said.

"Shit," Harry swore. Studying the files of the most infamous figures in recent Remnant history had been a priority in Talon, and Marcus Black and his mysterious murder had been a subject of considerable speculation within Atlas. "Anything about the girl?"

"I don't know, but they're definitely strong allies," Tukson said.

"If they're working for someone like Cinder, they're probably tough. I doubt we'll find any criminal records for either of them. They've probably been sanitised," Blake mused.

"I did overhear Mercury saying something about Emerald's Semblance, but she shushed him before he could say anything. Must be a trump card or something," Tukson said.

After a moment, Harry took an old Lien coin (cards were mostly used nowadays), and pressed a finger to it, before throwing it over to Tukson. "Just in case of an emergency, that coin will take you to Atlas, namely our quarters. It's a form of instantaneous transportation that I can create called a Portkey. Rusty and the Ice Queen already know about you, so insist on seeing them. Use the codephrase _I solemnly swear I am up to no good_."

Tukson frowned. He knew Harry could use magic of a sort, and that he came from Earth. He was one of the few who did. "This is new."

"Long story short, I found my way back home for a while," Harry said. "Well, I was abducted, technically. I got taught how to make a Portkey by one of the mages there. Anyway, to activate it, you have to hold it in your hand and speak the passcode, preferably while flaring your Aura. The passcode for activating it is _If Only I Had a Heart_."

"Got it," Tukson said, pocketing the coin, before looking at Blake. "I should warn you, Blake. Adam's still looking for you. Given what you two did to Taurus the last time you met…well, let's just say that he wears that damned Grimm mask to hide his scars now, rather than just to look intimidating."

"And let me guess, he's sworn vengeance because I turned half of his face into rare filet mignon, right?" Harry asked.

"This is serious, Harry! Adam Taurus is a relentless enemy! Doubly so to you and Blake, since you persuaded her to join Talon!"

"I know that!" Harry snapped. "I also know that Adam will go for a revenge-by-proxy thing, like the sore loser that he is. But Blake and I know enough about his Semblance and fighting style to counter it. And quite frankly, once we have the go-ahead from Rusty, if Neo has the opportunity, she will stab him in the back. Preferably in a way that doesn't make him a martyr for the rest of White Fang. Because that's a problem in dealing with terrorists like them, like White Fang devolved into: they love martyrs, particularly when they've been killed by the enemy."

"Believe it or not, Sienna Khan doesn't view it that way," Tukson said. "She's too fond of violence for my liking, but she at least still holds to the goals of the White Fang as your father envisioned them, Blake, twisted though her methods may be. Taurus, though…he'd rather humanity be enslaved by the Faunus. He's got ambitions to rise to the top…and apparently the Albains are encouraging that."

The Albain twins…a pair of fox Faunus, and the kingmakers of the White Fang. Corsac and Fennec. Harry hadn't met them, but he knew of them through Blake. "Are they insane?" Blake demanded.

"I've heard rumours that they believe Adam to be a better puppet than Sienna, to lead the White Fang as how they believe it should be run."

"Morons," Harry said. "Taurus is a mad bull. He may be smart, but he's also a barely-sane power-hungry psychopath, along with his underlings. The moment the Albains turn on him, well, they'd better put him down quickly and decisively. Otherwise…"

"I hear that," Tukson said. "Anyway, there isn't really anything more to say. Except make sure that Ilia understand this: Taurus and his followers have basically made a pronouncement that any Faunus who has joined Atlas in any way is to be considered a traitor of the highest order."

"She knows already," Blake said. "Even if we're not part of White Fang, we know how Taurus thinks." It went unsaid that she probably knew him best out of virtually anyone in the Vale at the moment, save for other members of the White Fang.

"Well," Harry said, "thanks for the time, information, and warnings, Tukson. Just remember, if things get too dicey, use the Portkey…"

* * *

After buying some books, the three teams left. Weiss was looking pensive, even as she flicked through a book she had bought. "You've got something on your mind, Weiss?" Ruby asked.

Weiss seemed set to retort, before subsiding. "I have _many_ things on my mind," she said.

"Maybe you want to talk about it?" Penny asked. "That's what friends do."

"Is someone bothering you? I'll break their legs if you want me to," Nora said cheerfully. Way too cheerfully for someone threatening GBH.

"Nora…" Ren admonished.

"Like I said, I have many things on my mind, things I don't wish to talk about, especially in public," Weiss said. Her tone, however, wasn't arrogant, but pensive.

"All right. Did you get what you wanted, then?" Harry asked.

"Yes. Thanks for bringing me there. Tukson seems like a nice man."

"He is as long as you don't piss him off. He's a puma Faunus. But as long as you don't treat Faunus like your father does, he's not going to hold your name against you."

"Maybe…"

* * *

Ironwood peered at the message sent to his Scroll. It was heavily encrypted, a new type of encryption that he had developed after finding out about the security holes in his military's network. He knew who it was from. Only a few people had access to this kind of encryption, and all of them were involved with Talon.

The message, once decrypted, read as follows:

 _Ironwood,_

 _Visited Tukson today. Had new info. Identified two of Cinder's little helpers. Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai. Details to follow in report once Neo calls in._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Potter._

Ironwood nodded grimly. It seemed that dark clouds were beginning to gather on the horizon. And hopefully, when the storm broke, they would be ready…

 **CHAPTER 7 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, there you have it. Tukson's helping Talon out, and they have some small idea of what Cinder is doing. But is it enough?**

 **I'm holding back on releasing the next chapter, because that and the aftermath didn't quite sit well with me. Which is a shame, as it is the big reveal of Harry's true weapon, aside from Walter. So I'm going back and reconsidering what the chapter does, which is a version of the events of** ** _Forever Fall_** **. I'm wondering whether I should skip it, or else revise it. I think I rushed it. That was one of the reasons (besides apathy and laziness, and a desire to concentrate more on my non-fanfic writing after that big bloody update that this fic was posted as part of) that I didn't release this chapter sooner.**

 **Oh, and as I write this, I have learned of a great story development involving Ilia in the latest episode. Yay!**

 **Review-answering time! A few people noted that I pretty much glossed over Harry, Blake and Ilia's past development of their relationship. I'll be honest, I just wanted to say how they got to this point in as laconic a manner as possible. How I did it stands for now.**

 **Also, Luna MAY end up on Remnant, I just haven't decided.**

 **DocSlendy** **: It's certainly a different dynamic to the norm of polyamorous relationships in fanfic, to my knowledge. Like I said, Ilia and Harry still have a relationship, but it's pretty much at the 'friends with benefits' level. She loves Blake, and Harry loves Blake too, and Blake has accepted it. Keep in mind that, for all her badassery, Blake has some fairly passive elements to her personality. And while her relationship with Harry is stronger, she accepts Ilia's love, and loves her back.**

 **hakon2feb** **: I don't have a Semblance planned for Jaune yet. Keep in mind that, as of writing this review answer, the only thing about his Semblance that we've seen is whatever the hell happened in** ** _Forever Fall_** **. Maybe something will turn up later in Volume 5 (they've arsed around long enough, IMO, and they should reveal what Jaune's Semblance is).**

 **whitetigerwolf** **: For now, Harry is using protection, so that's not going to happen anytime soon. Besides, they're worried about having children while Salem is still a threat, or at least a truly immediate one, and there's also the fact that they're still teenagers. That being said, Ilia IS willing to fall pregnant to Harry when the time is right.**

 **HolyKnight5** **: I'm not using that. But the Grangers ARE being trained by Atlas. And computer tech from Earth is being studied.**

 **1\. Bartitsu is a form of martial art developed in England, mostly unarmed and stick combat. In the form of 'baritsu', it was immortalised in the Sherlock Holmes stories as Sherlock's fighting style of choice.**


	9. Chapter 8: Secrets Exposed

**CHAPTER 8:**

 **SECRETS EXPOSED**

Cardin had, despite a few object lessons, stepped up his campaign against Jaune and his other targets. It was mostly when the rest of JNPR, RWBY or HPIN were absent. However, physical attacks and name-calling weren't all the burly leader of CRDL resorted to. He actually had enough of a brain to do things when he put his mind to it, and one day, they woke up to a bombshell.

The night before, he, Blake and Ilia had had a rather enjoyable lovemaking session in the expanded trunk. Normally, the trunk was off-limits to the other members of HPIN, but there was nothing actually forbidding them from entering. Which was why Harry, Blake and Ilia were only a little surprised to find Penny standing at the foot of the bed, looking unusually angry, though not at them of course. "We have a problem," she said. "Blake's former affiliation with White Fang has been leaked to the media…"

* * *

In retrospect, it was not surprising that something about it would have come out sooner or later. Blake's father, after all, had been the leader of White Fang until Sienna Khan took over, and someone could have looked up Ghira Belladonna, seen Blake's surname, and put two and two together. As it turned out, that was exactly what Cardin Winchester had done, and through his father, leaked it to the media.

Team HPIN, and Blake, had met with Ozpin briefly, who told them that he was handling the PR fallout with Ironwood. However, while Ozpin and Ironwood could deal with the media fallout, it was up to HPIN and Blake to deal with their friends in RWBY and JNPR. And that was going to be troublesome enough, especially due to Weiss. Ironwood had authorised 'Level 2 disclosure'. In other words, while Talon's existence and a general sense of its operations could be disclosed, ongoing operations (like Neo's infiltration of Torchwick's organisation) were not to be compromised. Penny's nature, and Harry's magic and origins, could be exposed if they could be trusted.

Thankfully, it was a Saturday, so they were able to convene in a disused conference room after a rather awkward breakfast. Harry noted that Weiss looked suspicious, but thankfully wasn't mouthing off, wanting to hear an explanation first. Yang seemed a little hurt that Blake kept secrets from her, but was otherwise looking more curious than suspicious. JNPR seemed united, as did Ruby, in just wanting to know the truth.

"Okay," Harry said. "Just know that by being here, you are effectively signing the Atlas Official Secrets Act. General Ironwood and Ozpin will be releasing a press statement about most of what you'll hear now, but this isn't stuff you can bandy about normally."

Weiss' lips thinned, but she, along with the others, nodded. "I just want the truth," the Schnee heiress said. "You've been hiding the fact that Blake is a member of White Fang."

"Ex-member. She deserted," Ilia pointed out. "Anyway, the White Fang has changed, and not for the better."

Blake nodded. "I'm sorry for keeping this from you, but…I knew how you would react, Weiss. Being a former member of White Fang is not something to be proud of, not now. You may not remember this, Weiss, but White Fang was mostly a peaceful protest group until five years ago. I won't deny that there were attacks on SDC concerns before then, but at the time, those were from people in the minority in White Fang. Now, though, ever since Sienna Khan took over…I had been a member since the day I was old enough to hold up a picket sign…and even when Khan took over, I thought I could keep the organisation from turning bloody from within. I was a fool. I eventually left, and joined Harry and Neo at Atlas. We had known each other for some time when they lived in Menagerie."

"You have to understand that the White Fang gives the people of Menagerie hope," Ilia said. "They think the news of the attacks are either propaganda disseminated by humans, and particularly Atlas and the SDC, or else perpetrated by rogue splinter groups giving the main organisation a bad name. Even now, most of what White Fang does is protect Menagerie from Grimm attacks rather than attacking human interests. But none of us have any illusions about what it's become."

"Before we came to Beacon, we were part of a group within Atlas working against White Fang, as well as other organisations working against Atlas' best interests," Harry said. "Talon."

"Talon?" Weiss blinked, before an enlightened look came over her features. "My sister sometimes spoke of Talon, as being one of the sections she ran within the Atlesian Military. She'd often complain about…" Then, she stared. "You're the Hunter-Seeker! The one whose bullets never miss!"

Harry winced. "I don't have that weapon with me now, though it might come later. Gabriel was more of a substitute weapon."

"The Shadow Cat…" Weiss continued, as if Harry hadn't spoken. "Spumone(1)…Shadow Chameleon…you are legends…and irritants to Winter, not to mention my father! I'd heard him complaining to Winter about exposing something and causing damage to…" She devolved into muttering, with it hard to tell whether she was angry or awed.

"Umm, didja break her?" Ruby asked.

"Maybe I should bop her on the noggin with Magnhild?" Nora mused. "Percussive maintenance helps with machinery."

"Not with mental hang-ups, Nora," Ren said gently.

"I've heard of Talon too," Pyrrha said. "Only rumours, but I had heard of some really top-notch special ops unit within Atlas that had prodigy Hunters, younger than the norm. I thought it weird, considering that I heard Ironwood has this thing against child soldiers."

"Rusty does," Harry said. "But he saw my skills, and those of Neo, and because we had been causing trouble, he basically recruited us in exchange for a pardon. Blake joined us some time afterwards, and so did Ilia, though she was originally in training with the main Atlesian Military. Penny is more of an unofficial member of Talon, but she's more than capable of holding her own, as you saw during initiation."

Weiss, after a moment, seemed to shake herself out of her bemused state, and peered at Blake. Eventually, she said, "While I cannot say I like what Talon has done to the SDC…I will admit that my father has many faults. If you have been truthful with me, then I shall be too. He is…not the best person. You have a low opinion of him, I am sure, but while I haven't been privy to the business practises of the SDC, he has been, at best, distant to me. At worst…well, I came here to Beacon to get away from him, to make a name for myself as a Huntress from underneath his shadow. I knew that, but what Ozpin said after that lesson…"

Harry realised that Weiss had bared her heart. "He didn't…hit you or anything?"

"Of course not! But…with some of his words, he might as well have done so," Weiss said. She looked over at Ruby and Yang. "I envy the pair of you for the father who loves you."

"Yeah…well, Dad ain't without his faults," Yang confessed. "After Mum disappeared, he fell into a funk. So did Uncle Qrow. But even if Dad wasn't there as much as we'd like, he loved us both. I'm sorry to hear your dad wasn't like that, Weiss."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah. If you wanna talk about it…look, we're partners, right?"

"Right," Weiss said, apparently giving the matter considerable thought. She then looked up at Blake. "And you are no longer part of White Fang?"

"As long as people like Adam Taurus are a major part of it, no," Blake said. "I made the mistake of drawing his attention. We nearly became boyfriend and girlfriend…but I realised what sort of person he was. And the White Fang…when we ran into Harry and Neo during a mission, Adam tried to kill them both, and when I tried to ask him to spare them…he just sneered at me."

"I roasted his face," Harry said. "Unfortunately, I didn't kill him. He leapt away when I was attacking, clutching his face. Blake fled…but left the White Fang shortly thereafter. And joined us, albeit after some persuasion. Given that she joined an Atlesian Military organisation, even if we investigate the SDC and their thugs, there's something of a price on her head. Just as there'd be one on yours."

Weiss blanched. "I see," she finally said. "I mean, I knew that was the case. My family has been targeted by the White Fang before. But what of your family, Blake? Or your own, Ilia?"

"My family is dead. My parents died in one of your father's mines," Ilia said bitterly.

"And officially, my parents have disowned me, as far as White Fang is concerned," Blake said. "Unofficially, they feel I'm trying to do the right thing, but Menagerie wouldn't be a safe place for me, let alone Ilia. My parents should be safe from any reprisals, theoretically. I worry about that…but my father told me to do what I believe is right, and he and my mother can handle any problems."

"So, there you have it," Harry said. "Now, the second part is pretty secret, but Rusty gave us permission to divulge this, on the condition you keep quiet. Do we have your word on this?"

The two teams looked at each other, before they all nodded. Harry looked at Penny, before he said, "There are two things we need to discuss, especially if we work on joint operations. Penny and I aren't exactly normal, by Remnant standards, and if word gets out to the wrong ears…well, remember how you saw that woman with Torchwick, Ruby? She's the wrong ears."

"Yeah, who was she?" Ruby asked.

Harry thought about it. While Ozpin and Rusty hadn't actually forbidden him from discussing the matters of Cinder and Salem, he had to be careful what he said. Eventually, he decided to give the basics. "Cinder Fall. She's a person of interest to Talon, and extremely dangerous, more so than Torchwick. Let's leave it at that. If you want details, ask Ozpin, and if he thinks you're ready to hear it, he'll tell you. Anyway, Penny, do you want to go first, or should I?"

Penny bit her lip rather endearingly, before she said, "I'll go first." She looked at the other two teams, gathering herself, before she confessed, "I wasn't born. I was made." As the others stared, she said, quietly, "I am the first artificial being capable of generating an Aura."

"Whoa! Seriously?!" Jaune yelped. "You're a robot?"

"The technical term is a gynoid," Ilia said.

Penny nodded solemnly. "My father created me with help and funding from General Ironwood. My mission is to help save the world. Harry and Neo were friends with my father, and they were my first friends. I'm telling you this because I'd like to think we are friends, or we can be."

"Well, I'm your friend, right?" Ruby said, looking a little shocked, but otherwise accepting, an expression mirrored to varying degrees by the others. Even Weiss looked accepting.

"Yay! I've got a robot friend! I've always wanted one since I was six(2)! C'mere!" Nora cheered, leaping over the table to tackle-hug Penny. With predictable results.

Ilia looked over at Ren. "I hate to see what she's like on coffee."

The stoic boy nodded solemnly. "Believe me, she makes most Grimm desirable to be around when she is."

"So, what's the other secret?" Pyrrha asked.

"Well, it's sort of two in one," Harry said. "One, I'm from another world, a parallel one to Remnant. And two, well, I'm a wizard."

As one could expect, there was scepticism and uproar, with Harry sighing, before he pointed his finger at Yang. With a pop, her hair turned black. "Huh?" Yang yelped. She pulled at her tresses and stared at it.

"There, you look more like your mother now," Harry smirked.

Yang glared at him, her lilac eyes going red. "Okay, I'm gonna give you a pass, as long as you change it back to normal right now. Otherwise, I'm going to dish out the standard ass-whooping people get when they TOUCH. _MY._ _ **HAIR**_."

Harry waved a hand, and the hair returned to normal, and then, with another wave of his hand, Nora, who was all but molesting Penny, rose into the air with a yelp. "Nora, as much as I appreciate you making friends with Penny, this is a serious discussion. I can also make it so pancakes taste like rancid crocodile meat for the rest of your life."

"How would you know what rancid crocodile meat tastes like?" Weiss asked, trying to find some handle on the moment.

"Well, there was one mission we took to Vacuo," Harry said, setting Nora down near where she was seated before. "Let's just say that in one village, there's a VERY weird custom for foreign visitors. Anyway, while magic is very rare back home, it's not as rare as Remnant. Here, I think the only known mages are the Four Maidens. Well, unless Semblances count."

"So, wait, that's not your Semblance?" Pyrrha asked.

"No. My Semblance is not dissimilar to Goodwitch's, an ability to manoeuvre Dust or Dust-laden objects with precision. That's partly how I can use Walter so well, because the wires are a special Dust alloy. My other weapon, not Gabriel, has a similar function, but, well…"

* * *

 _In the graveyard, Harry stared at the charred remains of his weapon, which he had been using to either shoot multiple Death Eaters at once, or beat them to death with. He looked up at Voldemort, who looked smug at first at having destroyed that weapon using Fiendfyre…only to look disturbed at the sheer fury coming from Harry._

 _Too calmly, Harry said, "That was your last mistake, you snake-faced twat…"_

* * *

"…I used Walter to tear that bastard apart," Harry said. "Rusty's engineers have been building me a new one, using what components I managed to salvage from the old one."

"I'd do the same thing if someone hurt Crescent Rose," Ruby said, plucking out the folded rifle-scythe and cuddling it like a teddy bear. "I won't let any meanie hurt you, I promise," she cooed quietly.

"She's like that," Yang said on everyone looking askance at her and her sister. "Anyway, so…you have magic? How many people know?"

"Outside of this room? Most people, if they saw it, thinks it's part of my Semblance. It's not far from the truth in a way, as they come from Aura to a degree. But those who know for sure are mostly within Talon and Atlas. Also, Ozpin knows, and I'm sure Goodwitch knows, thanks to Ozpin. I'll bet money that either Rusty or Ozpin told your uncle. Anyway, my magic is nowhere near as powerful as the full power of a trained Maiden. But I use it in combat anyway: it's handy against Grimm."

"And…this other world," Weiss said. "I want to have my sister confirm that first before I truly believe that part, but…you say magic is more common there?"

"Sort of. Mages there are much less frequent than Aura-users here, and they're in hiding. Whereas Aura powers and the powers of the Maidens are more public, even if the Maidens are more of a fairy tale. Dust doesn't exist, though, and technology is at least decades behind us," Harry said. "It's worse in the magical enclaves: they're stuck at least a century behind those without magic. Though Earth at least made it into space. Nothing on Remnant can really get into space."

"Anyway, the point is, we're showing a lot of trust in you by divulging this," Ilia said. "Keep in mind, we're still an active group of Talon, and so we can't actually divulge details of any ongoing operations without prior authorisation. There are things we know that we can't tell you. Maybe in time we can tell you, or maybe Ozpin will. We can tell you this much: there's a lot more going on out there than Roman Torchwick running around stealing Dust, and the activities of the White Fang. We're talking scary stuff."

"Just one question," Yang said. "Is my birth mother involved?"

"She's a person of interest for various reasons, but she has nothing to do with any of our operations," Harry said. "It's partly because your parents' old team, STRQ, was of interest to Ozpin and Ironwood."

"STRQ?" Jaune asked.

"Summer Rose, Taiyang Xiao Long, Raven Branwen, and Qrow Branwen," Harry recited. "Anyway, our cards are mostly on the table. While we cannot tell you everything, know that it's for a damned good reason. Weiss here can vouch for that, given her sister's position. So, are we on the same page, more or less?"

* * *

As it turned out, they were. But as they left the conference room, Ozpin turned out to be waiting for them, along with a courier holding a very long parcel. "Harry?" Ozpin asked. "We were recently sent this by priority courier. You have to sign for it. The others will be coming tomorrow, apparently."

Harry stared at the package, scarcely daring to believe it. Oh, this would make his day if that was what he thought it was. "Oh, my old friend, I have missed you so."

As he unwrapped it, Ruby cocked her head. "What is that?" Then, when the package was revealed, her silver eyes gleamed with excitement. "Oooooh!" she cooed.

"What is that?" Jaune asked, looking at what looked to be a combination of long staff and musket.

"This, my friends, is the Rip van Winkle," Harry said. "It fires custom Dust/titanium musket balls. One shot, but that's where my Semblance comes in." There was a bag hanging from the rifle, and Harry plucked out one of the musket balls, only to make it seem to come to life, orbiting his head, even zipping around like a fly or a mosquito. "You ever heard of the phrase 'killing two birds with one stone'? With my Semblance, which controls the position of certain substances like Dust, that can be a reality."

"I'm in love," Ruby cooed.

Blake raised an eyebrow at her teammate's antics. "With Harry or the Rip van Winkle?"

"Yes."

Yang turned a playful glare at Harry. "Stop seducing my sister, Harry."

"After you stop trying to seduce mine. I see where you're going with your demands for a rematch with Neo. Ow!" This last, predictably, was due to Neo swatting him playfully over the head…

 **CHAPTER 8 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, there you have it. Team HPIN and Blake clearing up the air, and Harry receiving his rebuilt weapon at long last.**

 **This chapter would originally deal with Hermione, Remus, and the events at Forever Fall, but I felt that it didn't sit right with me. So, I changed it significantly, with Cardin showing himself to be smarter, and nastier, than his canon incarnation. Of course, this means that Ironwood can come down on them. Hermione and Remus will appear later, and due to popular demand, I'm hoping to write in Luna.**

 **Now, to Harry's weapon. Yes, this is Rip van Winkle's enchanted musket from** ** _Hellsing_** **. I hadn't originally intended this to be his real weapon, but after some inspiration, I rewrote some elements to state that Gabriel was his secondary weapon. It's still a cool weapon, right?**

 **Anyway, this will be the last update for a little while. It's certainly my last update for the year. But, if you want more** ** _RWBY_** **goodness, why not give some of RumbleintheDumbles' stuff a go? Their** ** _A Change of Heart_** **and** ** _The Domino Effect_** **stories are HILARIOUS, featuring Neo being a massive troll, and** ** _Bad for Business_** **has Roman Torchwick being awesome…and working against Cinder. And while it's not** ** _RWBY_** **, their** ** _Worm_** **story** ** _Parental Guidance_** **is also hilarious. Imagine both of Taylor's parents being alive, being parahumans…oh, and they're thieves even Armsmaster and the Cauldron fear.**

 **Review-answering time!** **Gabriel Herrol** **: Harry won their encounter only because he had managed to catch Adam Taurus by surprise with some instinctively-cast Fiendfyre, scarring him. And while Adam is strong, Harry does have magic on his side, as well as his Semblance. And yes, Harry IS ruthless enough to kill if necessary, though he has orders to capture Adam and Cinder, if only for interrogation. But if he needs to kill them instead, Ironwood, and frankly Ozpin, would understand. The latter would be disappointed, but understanding.**

 **DocSlendy** **: Thanks. I've only watched most of Volume 1, but I'm aware of events in later seasons.**

 **hakon2feb** **: Funny you should say that. I'd bet that, given what happened in the latest episode, we WILL be seeing Jaune's Semblance in action soon. And Voldemort is dead, or at least disembodied once more, and Dumbledore is busy back on Earth tracking down and destroying the Horcruxes. As for Jaune seducing Salem, well, it's funny that you should say that. I once read either a one-shot or an omake for another fanfic where Jaune has a unique power…making Grimm chilled out. As if they were smoking weed. In fact, once he learns of this, Ozpin has Jaune visiting Salem and getting her to basically get stoned. It's hilarious, and I can't, for the life of me, remember the title of the fic (assuming it's not in an omake compilation or as an omake in a bigger fic) or who wrote it.**

 **EDIT: I found it as an omake chapter for _Jaune, the Charmismatic Gamer_ by Random O' Panda (which I fully recommend anyway). Have a Little Feith also pointed it out in their review after I had found it again. Here it is: s/12487036/14/Jaune-the-Charismatic-Gamer**

 **1\. Spumone is a type of ice cream that is similar to Neapolitan ice cream. I know of at least one story where Neo has an OC sister by this name.**

 **2\. Nora is quoting Fry from the very first episode of** ** _Futurama_** **.**


	10. Chapter 9: Reunion

**CHAPTER 9:**

 **REUNION**

Later that day, RWBY and JNPR were watching Harry spar with the Rip van Winkle in his hands against Neo and Ilia. "Whoa," Ruby breathed in awe as she watched him twirl the staff-musket, using it to block their attacks expertly.

Pyrrha nodded. The redhead noted that Harry's fighting style had changed for the better. It was clear that he was more used to wielding the Rip van Winkle than he was the Gabriel. He used the Walter in conjunction with the Rip van Winkle to bring enemies in close or vice versa, and then use the staff-musket to attack.

It was also very clear that Neo and Ilia knew precisely how to fight him when he used those weapons. Their expertise in fighting him spoke volumes. It was like a choreographed dance. Blake knew, though, that Neo had perhaps the edge in close quarters fighting when it came to combat, given her unpredictable moves and unorthodox usage of her Pernicious Parasol, not to mention her Semblance.

Weiss looked over at Blake. "I'll admit, he's very skilled. How good is that Rip van Winkle against Grimm?"

"Very good, especially against Grimm in a whole group," Blake said. "Of course, because it's a single-shot weapon, and he needs to concentrate somewhat to get the musket ball moving the way he wants it to, the musket is usually only used when we're there to support him. The original Rip van Winkle was a gift to him from a weapons manufacturer Harry and Neo saved in Menagerie. It was the very woman who gave me Gambol Shroud…and Adam his Wilt and Blush." The Cat Faunus shot Weiss a look. "I'll be blunt, Weiss. If you ever meet Adam, if any of you meet him…you retreat. He is one of the most powerful Faunus fighters in the whole of Menagerie. Harry managed to defeat him by surprising him, and that was sheer luck. He'd kill anyone I care about to hurt me…except for you, Weiss. He wouldn't kill you for a long time."

Weiss shuddered. "I never thought anything different."

"Why would he do that? I mean, kill people you care about to hurt you?" Ruby asked.

"Because, sadly, that is the way of the world, Ruby," Blake said. "Life is not a fairy tale. Happy endings have to be earned if you can get them at all. Good people die, and bad people thrive. It shouldn't be that way, but it does. Even monsters in human or Faunus skin are rarely born that way. I met Adam a few times before he became part of White Fang. He was…he was a sad boy, and an angry boy. But now…he's a monster. That's why they wear the Grimm masks, many of them. Many humans treat us like animals, like beasts, like Grimm…and so, they do that to show, _this is what you made us become_."

Weiss nodded, even as she frowned. The talk yesterday had been the capping to a wake-up call, and while she still detested the White Fang, she accepted that not everything was as black and white as she thought. In any case, her sister trusted these people, so she began to feel safe doing the same. She had actually asked Blake and Ilia to sit down with her after the talk, and discussed things with them. Hell, she even went and sought out Velvet.

Weiss may have been spoiled and entitled, but she wasn't stupid by any means, and she had empathy. She just needed a shock to the system to get her to understand some things. And while Blake couldn't be called a friend yet, nor could Ilia or Velvet, they were getting there, now that the air had been cleared. She hoped that, once she assumed the leadership of the SDC (assuming her father didn't give it to Whitley), she could start making changes for the better.

To distract herself, she looked over at Pyrrha. "Pyrrha, how well do you think you would do against Harry?"

The redhead pursed her lips. "I don't honestly know. But I may have an advantage because of my Polarity Semblance. If it's stronger than his Semblance, I may be able to prevent him from using his wires or his musket ball correctly, as I can affect non-ferric metals with my Semblance. And in terms of hand-to-hand combat…I'd say I'm better, at least in terms of offence and defence. But keep in mind, this is just him sparring. If it was a life or death situation…I don't know. Keep in mind, his magic gives him another weapon to use. That being said, I'd want to spar with him some time." She looked over at Blake. "You guys have enough training to be professional Hunters already. Why come to Beacon?"

The cat-eared Faunus met Pyrrha's gaze evenly. "We can't tell you all of it, but part of it is because Ironwood believes that something is going to happen in the Vale soon. In any case, while our training is good enough to make us professional Hunters, Ironwood wants us to gain the usual experience first. On top of what we already have. Plus, some of our training was interrupted for most of a year when we were taken, along with Harry, to Earth. And there's also the goodwill being fostered between Atlas and Vale by us being here."

"Politics," Weiss observed.

"Partly. I wouldn't be surprised if Winter wanted us to unofficially keep an eye on you as well," Blake said. "She does care about you, in that ice queen way of hers."

"…I know that," Weiss said. "And I don't need babysitters."

"Look at it this way," Penny said. "We can train you to be the best. Then you don't need us to help."

"Yeah, what she said," Ruby said with a grin.

Jaune, meanwhile, looked over at Blake with concern. "How are things holding up? I mean, after what that jerk Cardin did?"

Blake sighed quietly. "Ironwood and Ozpin are handling most of it, but apparently Ironwood's having me sit down for an interview with Lisa Lavender of VNN in a few days. I knew this might come out, but I didn't think Cardin would have enough brains to look up my name. Then again, he has spite in abundance."

"Maybe one of his teammates found out," Pyrrha mused. "A couple of them work well in class. And keep in mind that you do need good grades to get into Beacon, normally."

"In any case," Blake said, "we also got notification of more people from Atlas, or from Earth, more to the point, coming tomorrow. We met them on Earth, and they opted to come here. Hermione Granger is rather bookish, as is Remus Lupin. And we were surprised to learn that someone called Luna Lovegood would be coming here. She's like Nora, only…less energetic but more strange."

"That sounds like quite the achievement," Ren said.

"That sounds like competition!" Nora declared. "I will not give up my title to an interloper from another world!"

* * *

Harry would later learn that Luna came to Remnant with her father. Being magizoologists (well, magicryptozoologists), and learning of a whole new world with creatures like the Grimm and beings like the Faunus to catalogue, they had arrived on Remnant shortly after Harry and the others departed for Vale. Their eccentric temperament meant that Atlas was loathe to keep them, but Ozpin, who had spoken with them over video link, had suggested they come to Beacon to learn from Professor Port. The fact that they had warding knowledge would help.

Hermione would be helping out in the library, and Remus Lupin would be acting as the assistant for Professor Oobleck. Officially, anyway. Unofficially, they were here as HPIN's support, and as liaisons with Atlas. Sirius Black had intended to come, but he was currently working with Ironwood to upgrade the defences of Atlas via wards. He would come to visit later.

Harry had warned Ozpin in advance that Lupin was a werewolf, and Ozpin took that in his stride. There were plenty of secure places within Beacon for Lupin to stay during his transformation. Werewolves, thankfully, were mere legends here, though no less feared.

So when they arrived on an airship the next morning, Harry smiled, and embraced them both in their turn. "Hey, it's been a while," he said to them.

"It has," Hermione said, the bushy-haired girl returning the smile, as did the scarred Lupin. She looked at the gathered teams of RWBY, JNPR, and HPIN. She greeted Blake, Ilia, Neo and Penny (she only met Neo once she got to Remnant), before she turned to the others. "And these are?"

"Oh, yes. Allow me to introduce them. Blake's part of Team RWBY. That's Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao Long," Harry said. "And that's Team JNPR: Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren."

"Pleased to meet you," Hermione said, shaking their hands. "I'm Hermione Granger."

"Likewise," Lupin said. "I'm Remus Lupin."

After introductions were made, Harry frowned. "Where's the Lovegoods?"

"Well…they went to meet Professor Port at a restaurant down in Vale," Hermione said. "Apparently Luna and Port both enjoy pudding."

"Who doesn't?" Nora asked, tilting her head.

Hermione was about to reply, but Ruby caught a glimpse of the weapon on Hermione's back. "Ooh, is that your weapon?"

"She's a weapon fanatic," Harry said to a bemused Hermione.

"Oh, right." She took the bow off her back. "It's called the Palutena(1). The bow can break apart into a pair of short swords. I'm still not used to the swords, though, so I'll be using the arrows instead."

Lupin, recognising Ruby about to ask questions about his weapon, pulled it from a holster. "Mine's not exactly flashy. It's just a long-barrelled revolver I can use as a club. It hasn't got a name yet."

"Why not?" Ruby whined.

"So…you guys know Harry from his home?" Yang asked, trying to change the awkward subject. She reckoned that Ruby would marry Crescent Rose if it became a robot like Penny.

They nodded. "I met Harry shortly after he was born, but I didn't see him much until recently. Hermione here only met him about a year ago," Lupin said. "Both of us are…well, outcasts, to a degree, in our society. Hermione, to put it politely, has no pedigree to speak of as far as many elements of our society have, and I have an illness that people fear. When Harry offered us a second chance here, well, we jumped at it. This place is more dangerous than home in many regards…but we're better accepted here."

"Anyway," Hermione said, "it's a pleasure to meet you all."

* * *

Neopolitan watched the reunion with a smile. Few knew what went on in her head, though they learned to interpret her body language quite well. Harry, Blake and Ilia, along with Ironwood and Winter Schnee had, and so did Roman.

Roman, she felt ambivalent about. True, he was an unrepentant criminal, willing to kill if necessary, and certainly not a nice person. But to Neo, he actually gave some affection, like he was her big brother. At first, it annoyed her, as it felt like he was trying to take Harry's place in her life. But he backed off a little. In a way, despite his sociopathic tendencies, he also seemed desperate for someone to love, even if it was only in a little sister way.

Of course, there was the problem of Roman's new allies. The White Fang for one, and Salem's little helpers. Mostly Cinder, but there was also Arthur Watts and his leverage over Leonardo Lionheart, the Faunus headmaster of Haven in Mistral.

Roman had been summoned to a meeting with Cinder while Harry and the others were on Earth, and had come back shaken, even shaking in fear. His muttered utterances suggested that he had been, if only briefly, in communication with Salem. " _There are some bets you can't take_ ," he had muttered to himself.

Maybe Neo could have fallen in with Roman, had she never met Harry. Neo knew, given her childhood, of the abandonment, of the teasing and torment for her abilities, that she could easily have done so. She would be the first to admit, she was a misanthrope. She only joined Talon to help Harry, as well as Blake and later, Ilia. She didn't help others out of altruism, not for humanity in general (though she had a soft spot for Faunus outside the White Fang, given how well she and Harry were treated during their time living in Menagerie, hence their vigilante activities in Atlas). It was for those she considered her precious people. She fought against Salem's forces because if Salem prevailed, it would mean her friends' end.

Still, she couldn't help but make new friends. She liked most of the members of RWBY and JNPR, the main exception being Weiss, spoiled little brat she was. Oh, she was getting better, but she wasn't a friend. But Ruby was interesting and skilled, if revoltingly naïve, and Yang was a skilled, if overly confident and hot-tempered fighter. Jaune was like one of those puppies you can't help but adore, and you knew he would become a wolf one day. Pyrrha was skilled and proud of it, but not in an obnoxious way. Nora was…fun and funny, if crazy, and Ren, while a little boring in his quiet nature, nonetheless had respectable skills.

And there were also her friends in Talon. Penny, while a robot, was a good friend once you got used to her quirks. Ilia held more than a little darkness within her, due to her parents' deaths, but she fought through it. And Blake…she wanted to do the right thing, and it took some time for her to start running to her problems rather than from them.

And Harry. Dear Harry. The one bastion of her childhood that didn't cast her away, but kept her close. Her big brother.

Anyone who threatened him, she would end. Slowly. Painfully. Viscerally. The pain and torment that person would endure would draw Grimm from around Remnant. No matter if it was Roman or Adam or Cinder or Salem, she would make them _bleed_ …

 **CHAPTER 9 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, Harry's practising with the Rip van Winkle, Hermione and Lupin have arrived, and we've gotten a window into Neo's mind.**

 **I did say I wasn't going to update this for a while, but inspiration struck. This chapter and the next one have been written. Given how in** ** _The Stray_** **, Ruby states that a few months have passed since the events of** ** _Ruby Rose_** **, that gives time for quite a few things to happen.**

 **Review-answering time!** **DocSlendy** **: Never heard of Luther Strode.**

 **Toby860** **: Well, Harry's not a bitch, and in any case, the musket Rip van Winkle uses is cooler. Seras' most badass moment is when she ditches the Harkonnen and smears Zorin's face against a wall while Zorin's trying to rape her mind.**

 **Hakon2feb** **: The theme of green-eyed Hunters was wholly accidental. I just wanted to use a Semblance separate from magic that would be appropriate to Harry's weapons.**

 **Reishin Amara** **: Really? Hmm. Well, this Blake is more confident in herself, or at least revealing her past to those she trusts. While she's worried about Weiss' reaction, she also trusts that Weiss is able to tell the difference. The canon Weiss may not have, given her racism even late in Volume 1 (I actually watched** ** _The Stray_** **and** ** _Black and White_** **the day of publishing this chapter), but Blake had been upfront about her being a Faunus from the start in this story, so Weiss already had a challenge to her notions about Faunus, and Harry defending Blake and Ilia helped, though it could also have hindered matters (Harry wasn't being very diplomatic, after all). I think it is because Weiss is aware that they were part of the Atlesian military, which she respects due to her sister, and that Blake is taking pains not to excuse the current White Fang (unlike in the show, where she calls them 'misguided': here, she is under no illusions as to what they're doing), though she also points out that it used to be a better organisation. As noted above, Weiss spoke to Blake, Ilia and Velvet privately, and actually listened. She still thinks the horror stories about her father are exaggerated somewhat, but she also wants to prevent such incidents from happening again.**

 **ILikeHotDogs** **: Because of** ** _Hellsing_** **. Namely Rip van Winkle, a Nazi-turned-vampire obsessed with the opera** ** _Der Freischutz_** **, aka** ** _The Freeshooter_** **, using a bullet she can control after firing it from a musket. Actually, funny story within this story is that Harry actually based his weapons on the weapons of a couple of Hunters from centuries ago who defected to Salem's side. In a way, he views using these weapons as redeeming them from the bad association.**

 **Anyway, here's a brief clip from** ** _Hellsing Ultimate_** **showing Rip van Winkle trying to use her musket on Alucard…**

 **watch?v=fmWWsj2qQgY**

 **And the same scene from** ** _Hellsing Ultimate Abridged_** **, where Rip is a would-be social justice warrior (and she's a Nazi, go figure), and Alucard…tears her right down…**

 **watch?v=i0C3IhWcJH0**

 **Guest** **: Remnant doesn't have the ability to have spaceflight. I think they cover this in one of the** ** _World of Remnant_** **videos, where it's stated that any spacecraft sent into orbit fails due to Dust failing outside of the atmosphere. Maybe Atlas has begun to try other means of spaceflight, having learned of how it was done on Earth from Hermione and her parents, but it's a lower priority than, well, ensuring that they stop the Grimm. Yes, satellites would be useful, and Atlas is working on that, but they've also got Salem to deal with.**

 **206er** **: He didn't gain a wand, he refused to use one. The Rip van Winkle can double as a magic staff anyway, but he prefers to use focusless magic, as that is what he is used to. This raised more than a few eyebrows during the Weighing of the Wands, and Ollivander was understandably surprised to be inspecting a musket.**

 **1\. I am aware that Cinder has a not dissimilar weapon, but I was thinking along the lines of Palutena's Bow from** ** _Kid Icarus_** **. Hermione tends to use the bow part more, though.**


	11. Chapter 10: Maidens and Media and Mayhem

**CHAPTER 10:**

 **MAIDENS AND MEDIA AND MAYHEM**

Team HPIN, along with Blake, peered at the brown-haired girl lying comatose in a tube, her only concessions to modesty being a tube top and a miniskirt. Part of her face was scarred noticeably. "The Fall Maiden," Blake murmured. "Amber, you said her name was?"

Ozpin nodded. He was standing nearby with Glynda Goodwitch, the seven of them standing in a vast underground chamber beneath Beacon. "James knows about her. Indeed, what you are seeing here is top of the line Atlas technology. Someone stole half of her powers, and we believe that person to be Cinder Fall. How that happened exactly, I don't know, but I have suspicions based on what Qrow told me."

"Poor sod," Harry said. "Rusty only told us that the Fall Maiden had her powers stolen. What of the other Maidens?"

"I'm keeping the identities of the Summer and Winter Maidens secret for now. As it is, I am trusting you with a lot more than I normally would," Ozpin said, taking a sip of hot chocolate. "As for the Spring Maiden…I don't even know if she is still alive, the last one I knew. James would call her AWOL. The reason why I am showing you this is that James and I have been discussing bringing you further into our group, and James has updated Penny's software to prevent hacking. You already know that this group works to prevent Salem and her forces from causing chaos. We also safeguard the Maidens, albeit by keeping a discreet eye on them. What they do with their power, as long as they don't harm others, is their business, but in times of crisis, they may be needed to combat the Grimm, and Salem's forces. Sometimes, I take teams of note at Beacon and bring them into the group. Team STRQ was one of them. Unfortunately, it did not go well for various reasons."

"Raven Branwen, right?" Ilia asked.

"Yes, but not in the way you may think," Ozpin said. After a moment, he asked, "How old do you think I am?"

Harry blinked at the unexpected question, before he walked over to Ozpin and peered at his eyes. "That's a good question. Why do you ask that?"

Ozpin eventually said, "James spoke to me of the man you faced on Earth, Voldemort, a vile man who desired immortality. I am cursed with it."

"Cursed?" Blake asked.

"It's a very long story. I am old enough to remember a time when Salem was still human…and how she fell into darkness. I had my part to play in that fall, and as punishment for failing to stop her, the gods cursed me with immortality. Whenever I die, my soul and memories are reincarnated into another person, usually a boy. I merge with them. I am the sum of scores of lives and lifetimes, made to oppose Salem time and again. You have heard of the tale of how the Maidens came to be. I am the old wizard of that myth. It's part of the reason I feel responsible for them. I gave them a power that others covet, though this is the first time one of Salem's agents have tried to steal that power. Usually, Salem prefers to sway a Maiden to her side. It has happened before. Or she has them killed to deny her opponents their power."

Ilia peered at the grey-haired man, and remarked, "So that's what you meant when you told Ruby you've made more mistakes than anyone alive on Remnant. You've been around long enough to make a long list."

"It's not an achievement to take pride in," Ozpin said solemnly. "Neither is my immortality. Those I love and cherish grow old and die if they're lucky, while I live on. On my better days, I view it as a necessary evil. After all, I know Salem and her methods better than anyone, save Salem herself. I also have forgotten more about the history and relics of Remnant than anyone could possibly learn. And Salem may never be vanquished for good: I have tried time and time again, and she always comes back."

"Rusty knows about this?" Harry asked.

Ozpin nodded. Glynda cleared her throat, and said, "Obviously, this is not something you should speak of publicly. Neither Professor Ozpin's immortality or the presence of Amber."

"Neither would go down well," Harry mused, before going back over to the life support capsule containing Amber and rapping on the glass. "What are you going to do about her?"

"For the moment, nothing. Her powers are bifurcated. Should she die, the remainder of them may yet pass to Cinder," Ozpin said. "However, we do have experimental technology that can transfer the rest of her power into another. The problem is finding the right candidate. Cinder Fall aside, how the Maidens gain their power is somewhat tricky. The Maidens, in a way, choose themselves, in their suitability for the role. Unconsciously, yes, but they choose themselves. But more to the point, the new Maiden is also frequently the last person in the dying thoughts of the previous Maiden, as long as they are a young female. Otherwise, they usually go to someone suitable. Given that Cinder Fall, the woman who stole part of her power, would be probably in the last thoughts of Amber…"

"That would be problematic," Blake said. "You risk Cinder gaining the full Fall Maiden power."

"Indeed. That is why I want to try transferring Amber's remaining power once we find a suitable candidate. A number of them include members of RWBY and JNPR," Ozpin said. "The truth is, it's the secret duty of every Hunter to be prepared to oppose Salem, though as Salem is the enemy of all humanity, even the Faunus, this is a matter of course."

"So why not expose her existence publicly?" Ilia asked.

"Once, I did so, but Salem exposed my immortality. This was a very long time ago, but many people turned on me. This was some time before I gave the Maidens their power. It was the people turning on me, you see, that had me exiling myself from society, embittered about humanity. Should I try the same thing again, Salem will, through her agents, expose my nature again. Her goal is not necessarily to wipe out humanity. Her goal is to cause suffering. And she knows that disunity is an excellent tool. It's one of the reasons I feel the fragmentation of STRQ acutely. It's partly my fault. I granted the Branwens powers beyond their Semblances. Raven, however, viewed it as a curse, and she detested what she considered my manipulations. Then again, considering that she and her brother joined Beacon to learn how to kill Hunters…" Ozpin shook his head. "I trust Raven enough that she would oppose Salem, even if she refuses to ally with me. But the actions she undertakes with her tribe's help…"

Harry nodded, thinking to Rusty's reports on her, on how her tribe raided villages and left them vulnerable to further attacks by Grimm. Apparently, she didn't care, claiming the strong survived and the weak left to perish to survivors. Once, when he had discussed such an attitude with Hermione, she had called it 'Social Darwinism'. Yang was better off not knowing her mother: if Raven actually cared about her daughter, she would have either stayed to raise her, or else would have raised her in the tribe. Being strong was a necessity in the lands Raven's tribe roamed, true, but to have such apathy to the plight of others, especially those whose plight you caused yourself…

"If Rusty trusts you, knowing this, we trust you," Harry said. "But if you give us an order relating to anything like this or Salem, we don't follow blindly. We want to know why."

Ozpin nodded. "Very well. You are all very mature for your age. I lament the loss of your innocence…but I commend your maturity."

"That being said, I do have another question," Penny said, holding up a hand. "You said you brought in Ruby because of her eyes, that silver-eyed warriors are feared by the Grimm. Is there a power involved there, too?"

Again, Ozpin nodded. "The power harms the Grimm or those tainted by them…but can only be unlocked in extremis, and takes time to master. In legends of yore, it is said that a single look from a Silver-Eyed Warrior, as they were known, could kill a Grimm. I know that a Silver-Eyed Warrior, at the height of their powers, can stop the strongest of Grimm. But they are not invincible by any means. Salem knows how to deal with them by dint of experience."

"Is there any way to unlock the power without, well, traumatising her?" Harry asked.

"None that I know of. It will be in battle, I am sure. I wish it weren't so. Well, I think that's enough of a history lesson for the day. We should start preparing Blake to meet the press…"

* * *

Ozpin's revelations were still sticking with Harry as he watched Blake, dressed in Beacon uniform, sit opposite Lisa Lavender in a VNN studio the next day. Security was tight, understandably. While anti-Faunus fools who'd want a piece of a former member of the White Fang were a potential problem, the main concern was the White Fang itself.

Anyway, Harry had to wonder, how much could they trust Ozpin? True, Rusty trusted Ozpin, or at least mostly did so, but Harry knew that the two men still had some trust issues. Talon being sent over was meant as an attempt to bridge that. And he understood why Ozpin didn't disclose the full truth, if he had been telling anything of the truth about his history with Salem.

But Talon was not merely a military unit. They didn't obey orders blindly. They questioned, they disobeyed, they objected. It was part of the reason why Rusty and Winter found them so frustrating. At best, they were called mavericks. At worst, they were called insolent.

But they also tried to do what was right. And Harry had to admit, if Rusty and Ozpin were telling the truth about Salem, and he was fairly sure they were, then he would oppose Salem and her forces with everything he had.

"Do you think the White Fang will attack?" Ilia asked quietly as they stood in a corner of the control room, watching Blake on one of the monitors.

Harry chewed his lip. "Adam's obsessed with Blake, but he's not stupid. If he is working with Roman Torchwick, he'll know attacking will jeopardise their operations, at least while Blake is here. But I can't say the same for any of his underlings. Fanaticism and intelligence don't tend to go hand in hand. We've got Neo on standby in the studio proper, ready to use her Semblance to get Blake and the others out of there. It's either going to be White Fang, or else rioters stirred up by anti-Faunus fanatics."

"… _Is because the White Fang has changed_ ," Blake was saying. " _I fight for our equality, and I refuse to condone the actions of the Schnee Dust Company. But I also refuse to harm people whose only crime was to be human._ "

" _Do you think that your fight is harder within the Atlesian military?_ " Lisa asked.

" _Yes and no. General Ironwood doesn't care if you're a human or a Faunus, only that you're skilled at what you do. But by the same token, both my status as a Faunus and as a former member of White Fang does make it more difficult. Even those who believe in me still keep an eye on me out of caution, and others look on me with contempt. If it weren't for my friends, it would be a lot harder. Harry Potter, Neopolitan, Ilia Amitola, and Penny Pollendina. And I'd like to think that I have made new friends, both on my new team, RWBY, and on another team, JNPR._ "

" _Yes, speaking of which, how did it feel being on the same team as the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company?_ "

" _Odd. She accepted me enough despite her attitude to Faunus, but she was understandably wary. She may have grown up in a life of privilege, but it doesn't necessarily mean that her life was perfect. She came to Beacon to make her own name, away from her father's company, and I understand that ambition. When my former membership of the White Fang was exposed, she was understandably upset. But we have come to an understanding._ "

Blake would have continued, but the building shook, and Harry was on the alert. He took a walkie-talkie from his belt, one he had asked for, and activated it. "Potter to Security, what happened?"

" _Some bastard's ram-raided the doors!_ " yelled a guard. " _Three Faunus wearing Grimm masks are engaging our men in Reception. Three of them are heading to the studio._ "

Harry nodded, before he turned to Penny. "Penny, assist security in Reception. Ilia, let's stop these idiots. Capture protocols, lethal force only if necessary. Rusty and Ozpin'll want to question them…"

* * *

Harry and Ilia managed to enter the studio in time for the White Fang members to rake the studio in machine gun fire…only for Lavender, Blake and the crew members to seemingly shatter like glass. "What the fuck?!" one of them snarled. Harry knew that Blake and Neo were busy escorting Lavender and the others to safety.

"Freeze!" Harry snarled, readying Walter, while Ilia readied Crossland. "Drop your weapons!"

It almost never worked, but protocol required it. The intruders whirled, only for Ilia to snap Crossland into whip form and lash it at one of them. As her target convulsed under the effect of Lightning Dust, Harry was already using Walter to snatch the weapons from the others. One of them showed claws from her fingers. "Atlas scum!" she roared, before leaping at him.

Harry fired a Stunner at the furious woman, only to realise too late that her momentum sent her crashing into him, even unconscious. As he tried to get the woman off him, dazed, he saw the final Faunus approaching, only for Ilia to hit him with Crossland. He roared in pain, but unlike the other one, didn't fall down. "You traitorous whore," he snarled, snatching Crossland from Ilia.

Harry managed to roll the body off him in time, only to realise, Ilia didn't need help. She could handle herself, but things had become moot with the sound of shattering glass.

The Faunus heard it too, and whirled to find the Pernicious Parasol meeting his face. Neo, her face twisted in fury, attacked the Faunus time and time again, not even stopping when he fell to the ground, his mask half-shattered with shards stuck in his face. Even when she realised he was unconscious, Neo merely sneered, before sliding the hidden sword out of the Pernicious Parasol, and raised it, about to gut the Faunus.

"Neo," Harry slurred slightly. "Capture protocols…"

His little sister looked at him, her eyes begging for him to allow her to do this, in revenge for hurting her friends. But he shook his head woozily, so Neo contented herself with kicking the Faunus viciously in the ribs, hard enough for at least one of them to break, given the sickening snap Harry heard. "Neo," Ilia said. "Are the others secure?"

The pink and black-haired girl nodded grimly. She mimed a pair of cat ears, then held the Pernicious Parasol like a gun. Harry got unsteadily to his feet. "Blake's guarding them," Harry said. He held out his hand, and used a spell Sirius had taught him. Magically-conjured ropes wrapped themselves around them. "We need to find out Penny's status."

"Her status is that she's alive, well, and kicked ass," drawled a voice they didn't expect.

Harry and the others turned to face the entrance, where Penny and another man was, an older man, dressed in grey, well-worn clothes with a cloak, a sword-like weapon in his hand. His features were handsome, but had a lazy set to his expression, red eyes peering out at them. "So, you're Jimmy's kids. Sorry we met like this, but I was in the area when this went down. The name's Qrow…"

 **CHAPTER 10 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, Qrow's on the scene. He's only making a token appearance for now: he's still on his missions for Ozpin, but he was visiting Vale, having enough time to see Ruby and Yang this time (unlike in canon, where he's struggling to find concrete info on Cinder, Emerald and Mercury, as thanks to Neo, he has more leads to follow), but next chapter will be him and HPIN meeting, as well as Adam, Roman and Cinder discussing the fallout of the attack.**

 **If you're wondering why Ozpin is letting them in on the stuff about Amber and his immortality so early, well, they know in broad terms about the former already, thanks to Ironwood. Ozpin's revelation about his immortality was a test of their trust. They're wary, but Ironwood presumably knows about it (Qrow did, given his reaction to Oscar).**

 **BTW, it's worth pointing out that one of the inspirations for the press conference was** ** _Bad for Business_** **by RumbleintheDumbles. Also, with the revelation of Jaune's Semblance at long last, I'm going to try and integrate that.**

 **No numbered annotations this time.**


	12. Chapter 11: Discord and Concord

**CHAPTER 11:**

 **DISCORD AND CONCORD**

Adam Taurus felt many causes for anger. The way his people were treated by the humans. The way Sienna Khan _did not go far enough_. The way his love betrayed him for a mere human. The way those burn scars that human inflicted on him itched and ached, even years after they were inflicted on him. However, that particular event had taught him patience. Revenge was a dish best served cold, as they said, and Adam intended to wait for the right time to strike. Talon's transfer to Beacon made his love and those he would destroy to punish her for hurting him easier to access.

But there were two things trying his patience at the moment. The first was that, despite his explicit orders, some of his underlings got it into their thick heads to attack the VNN studios to try and capture or kill Blake, and while he rewarded initiative if it was applied intelligently, he also knew that to act precipitously in this manner was to jeopardise things. There had been discontent amongst his brothers and sisters about working with ( _NOT under! NOT for!_ ) Roman Torchwick and Cinder Fall, but Adam was confident that, once he got what he wanted, he would deal with them both.

The second was that Torchwick was jeering at Adam for this failed attack. Torchwick may be skilled, but he made his contempt for Faunus clear (though Adam also knew Torchwick was a misanthrope in general: he held almost everyone in contempt), and his contempt for Adam's leadership skills even clearer. Like now. "I mean, I can get how you are capable of waiting, but it says a lot about your little petting zoo that they won't listen to your orders," Torchwick sneered. "What those two foxes see in you, I dunno."

"It's the fault of the soldiers for not listening to their commander," Adam said, forcing his tone to stay calm, despite the jab at himself and the Albains. "Should they escape or be liberated, I will make an example of them. I made it very clear that Blake was not to be touched until either the assault on Beacon began in earnest, or another opportunity arose. They seemed to believe that the latter was the case here, despite my repeated orders on the matter. What of your agent?"

"She's probably had to capture them alive to keep her cover. They haven't seen her with me, have they?"

"No. Only a few of our brothers and sisters have seen Neopolitan. None of those were involved in that farce."

"Good. As it stands, we'll probably have to close down the base they used. Thankfully, we didn't use it for storing Dust or anything that could be linked back to us," Torchwick said. "But Ironwood and Ozpin will find out that you're in the Vale."

"That will be a moot point," purred a voice, the source of which entered the room, strutting on high-heeled shoes of black glass. Cinder Fall, a woman of indeterminate but young age with black hair, pale skin, golden eyes, and wearing a red dress. She was followed by the silver-haired Mercury Black, and the green-haired, dark-skinned Emerald Sustrai. Brats, but capable brats for humans, though their mistress was the truly dangerous one. "I took action to deal with them. Emerald here used her Semblance to cause the driver of the prison vans to crash at high speed, and I destroyed the vans using Dust, along with all of those inside them. Every cause needs martyrs, I am sure."

Adam nodded reluctantly, but he was still angry with this witch. "You killed them without consulting me."

"Those fools took action despite your orders to the contrary," Cinder retorted.

"And the members of Talon?"

"They were talking with Qrow Branwen, one of Ozpin's pawns if you don't know," Cinder said. "But even that fool Ozpin will see this as a need to tighten security, even if only discreetly, around Beacon. It means our attempts to infiltrate ahead of the Vytal Festival will be made all the more harder. He may even agree to have Ironwood come along to bolster it. Incidentally, Roman, has Neopolitan gotten more information from Beacon?"

"Well, it seems that Red was brought in by Ozpin early. Ruby Rose, daughter of Summer Rose and Taiyang Xiao Long, and sister to Yang Xiao Long. Oh, and her uncle is Qrow Branwen. Must be who taught her that scythe-fighting style," Torchwick mused. "Ruby and Yang, along with Schnee's brat, are on a team with your runaway pussy, Adam."

Adam grinned painfully beneath his mask. _Well, not only do I get Blake back, but I can torture Weiss Schnee and mail her back to her father in little bits. Still, patience. Use the time to think of what exactly you will do to them. Including these fools who think I'm their attack dog on a leash_.

"Make sure, Adam, that you keep your brothers and sisters in the Fang under control," Cinder said. "A reckoning is coming to Remnant, and it will all start with the fall of Beacon…"

* * *

"You remind me a lot of my godfather," Harry said as he sat opposite Qrow Branwen at a café near the VNN studios, his comrades in tow.

"In a good way or a bad way?" Qrow asked, only to laugh when Harry made a 'little bit of both' gesture. "Jeez, I didn't think any kid Jimmy had working under him would be like this. Then again, I hear from Oz that you pretty much give him an ulcer."

"Neither Rusty nor Winter think much of you," Harry said. "Oh, they praise your skills, but they call you a 'drunken old crow'."

"That'd be right. Don't get me wrong, we respect each other's skills, but we have a bit of a clash of personality," Qrow said, pouring a substantial amount from his hip flask into a cup of coffee. He then looked at the others. "Oz has told me about you guys too. Nice to meet you. All of you. I'm guessing you're the one I should thank for the info, right, Neo, was it?"

Neo nodded. Blake, meanwhile, looked pensive. "And your investigation into…?"

"Still ongoing, but I have more info than I would have. Besides, Ozpin might trust you guys, and I like you already, but I don't quite trust you personally yet," Qrow said. "Don't take it personally, I'm just not a fan of…heh, I'm gonna call him Rusty to his face, it's a good name. But yeah, Jimmy and I don't really see eye to eye. Hell, sending you guys to Beacon is probably one of the biggest shows of trust he's ever shown. But for all I know, he's done it for less noble reasons than he claims. Like I said, I like you guys already, but I don't know you guys well enough."

"Understandable," Ilia said. "A bit hurtful, but understandable."

Qrow nodded. Then, his smile became less lazy and more affectionate. "Oz tells me you've become friends with my nieces."

"Yes," Harry said. "Blake is on their team, RWBY, and I have to say, Ruby and Yang are very likeable. Ruby's a bit naïve and Yang needs to control her temper a little better in combat, but I'd be glad to fight alongside them, and I'd like to think we're friends."

"And more?" Qrow asked, with a slight edge to his tone.

"No, no!" Harry protested. "I already have Blake." _And Ilia_ , he added privately.

"Oh, already have a girlfriend? And one with balls, at that," Qrow said. "It takes a lot to do what you did, Blake. Anyway, look, if you were seeing Ruby or Yang…well, Ruby's a bit young for you, but Yang's okay. But if you hurt either of my nieces…" His eyes narrowed. "Rusty'd never find your body."

Blake's hackles rose. "And if you ever harmed Harry, they'd never find yours."

Qrow laughed. "Protective too. You've got good taste, Harry. Speaking of my nieces, are they still at Beacon?"

"No, they were waiting nearby with Goodwitch," Harry said. "Just in case we needed backup, but only six of those buggers were there."

"And they're all dead, along with their escorts," Goodwitch said as she approached, RWBY and JNPR in tow. "General Ironwood is furious, and Ozpin…well, he is angry too. The drivers crashed, and there was an explosion. However, we found traces of Dust. Someone wanted to silence them."

"Great," Ilia muttered. "Not that we would have gotten anything useful out of them."

Any further discussion was halted when Ruby and Yang yelped, "Uncle Qrow!" simultaneously. Ruby used her Semblance to go over to him in a blur of rose petals. Clearly, it'd been some time since they saw each other.

* * *

Qrow promised to see them later, shortly before he left to continue his mission, but for now, he wanted to catch up with Ruby and Yang. Later that day, Harry used his Scroll to log onto the chatrooms of Vale News Network, and found a chatroom relating to what happened…

 ** _INTERVIEW ATTACK!_**

 ** _Official Lisa Lavender_** _: Doubtless many of you watched the horrific attack on the interview I was conducting with Blake Belladonna, Huntress from the Atlas organisation Talon. Thankfully, due to both special precautions and quick action, none of those present in the studio came to any harm, and our security personnel are in stable conditions at the local hospital. I would like to thank Miss Belladonna, as well as Team HPIN, for their decisive actions, and the intervention of Beacon graduate Qrow Branwen. It's a sad indictment for freedom of speech when armed terrorists attack a news studio. In any case, feel free to discuss matters here._

 ** _IScream4IceCream_** _: 1st! Also, best Neapolitan I've ever had was today in the café near the VNN studios._

 ** _UWantAFaceFullOfMace?_** _: Who says they were trying to kill her? Maybe they wanted 2 bring her back where she belongs._

 ** _CrescentRose4Life_** _: and where would that be?_

 ** _FUWhiteFang_** _: The animal pound. Failing that, Menagerie._

 ** _MonkeyCMonkeyDo_** _: C'mon, man, not cool. She's got balls to speak out like that._

 ** _FUWhiteFang_** _: It's a double bluff, idiot. She's pretending to be a traitor to them._

 ** _BushyHairedAthena_** _: *facepalm* Well, this is off to a great start._

 ** _Wiz_** _: Welcome to the CCT network, BHA! Warning: Here there be trolls._

 ** _FUWhiteFang_** _: It's not being a troll if I'm telling the truth. Once one of the Fang, always one of the Fang._

 ** _No1NightshadeNinja_** _: *sigh* And she can fool General James Ironwood because…?_

 ** _UWantAFaceFullOfMace?_** _: Well, some generals get there cause of connections and money. Like Lagune._

 ** _HAMMERTIME1234_** _: OR BECAUSE OF AWESOME WEAPONS!_

 ** _CrescentRose4Life_** _: yeah!_

 ** _IScream4IceCream_** _: Or maybe because he has extremely competent yet grossly underpaid underlings? ;)_

 ** _IBurn_** _: Seriously, are you guys saying she's pulling the wool over the eyes of General Ironwood?_

 ** _FUWhiteFang_** _: Well, yeah._

 ** _MissAnthropic_** _: It wouldn't be too hard._

 ** _Nevermore_** _: Indeed. Though the world, and this BBS, are filled with fools. Sadly, I have one as a brother._

 ** _BushyHairedAthena_** _: So, is this anti-Atlas, or anti-White Fang, or both?_

 ** _Nevermore_** _: Good question. And people wonder why the Grimm attack. I have to say, I was mildly disappointed by the skill of Ironwood's toy soldiers. Then again, that's better than the norm. Ironwood, though, is a fool, as is anyone who listens to the Gospel According to Ozpin._

 ** _CrescentRose4Life_** _: u take that back!_

 ** _Nevermore_** _: Funny thing: your mother said the exact same thing under the circumstances._

 ** _IScream4IceCream_** _: Wow, seriously? Your Mom comments this early on? Well, Nevermore, I probably robbed your Mom blind._

 ** _Nevermore_** _: I doubt it._

 ** _NoStringsOnMe_** _: Well, actually, there was an incident involving people who will not be named trying to prank General Ironwood. He not only saw through it, but turned it on them._

 ** _BlizzardBeauty_** _: …Seriously?_

 ** _BushyHairedAthena_** _: Seriously?_

 ** _RainbowWhip_** _: Seriously. I was there. The General is a major paranoiac, and with good reason._

 ** _Wiz_** _: I was there too._

 ** _IScream4IceCream_** _: That's not what you said at the time. ;P_

 ** _Nevermore_** _: Defending against a prank perpetrated by pubescents is different to defending the world. And I've been infected with alliteration._

 ** _UWantAFaceFullOfMace?_** _: Oh great, Ironwood's got a bunch of sockpuppets here._

 ** _IScream4IceCream_** _: How dare you! I don't have anyone's hand going where only colorectal surgeons dare to go!_

 ** _Ashes2Ashes_** _: …Thanks for that mental image, IceCream. I now have to go and try to burn it out of my brain._

 ** _BushyHairedAthena_** _: Can I have some of that?_

 ** _MonkeyCMonkeyDo_** _: Me too._

 ** _Nevermore_** _: Dammit, I'm going to be picking up my brother's drinking habits now…_

 ** _MissAnthropic_** _: Sadly, I have too good a memory, resistant to such methods of purging it. You'd think age would hamper that._

 ** _HAMMERTIME1234_** _: OOH, SOCKPUPPETS? CAN I SHARE PANCAKES WITH THEM?_

 ** _FreeOfWrackspurts_** _: Depends on the sockpuppet._

 ** _BushyHairedAthena_** _: Oh no. She's discovered online forums. Run for your lives._

 ** _Official General Ironwood_** _: I don't need sockpuppets. And those who attempted the prank had the dubious pleasure of cleaning the latrines with toothbrushes. Miss Belladonna has my trust, which is not at all easy to earn, but certainly very easy to lose. This cowardly attack shows just how damaging Miss Belladonna's comments are to the White Fang, and it is only due to timely action that casualties were kept to a minimum. However, associates of the terrorists murdered not only them, but members of the Vale Police Department, whose only crime was doing their jobs._

 ** _JusticeIsComing_** _: My darling…remember, you and those you cherish are never safe. You will be punished for hurting me. Savour that thought._

 ** _CrescentRose4Life_** _: wow…creepy much?_

 ** _MonkeyCMonkeyDo_** _: Umm, does Ironwood have some crazy internet stalker?_

 ** _Wiz_** _: You'd be surprised. But I don't think JIC meant Ironwood._

 ** _IBurn_** _: Still creepy AF tho._

 ** _BlizzardBeauty_** _: Seconded. I half-expected him to make some comment about liver, fava beans, and a nice Chianti._

 ** _HotCocoa4Eva_** _: I believe it is a case of what is known as the online disinhibition effect. However, I applaud Miss Belladonna's courage in speaking out, and Talon's quick action. Remember that it is negative emotion that attracts the Grimm. Keep that in mind before you post any inflammatory remarks._

 ** _Nevermore_** _: In other words, some idiot who thinks he's brave hiding himself and his small pecker behind a computer screen. They wouldn't last five seconds where I live._

 ** _UWantAFaceFullOfMace?_** _: STFU and GTFO._

 ** _BlizzardBeauty_** _: Wow. Eloquent and erudite response, Mace._

 ** _BushyHairedAthena_** _: Agreed. I expected a moderately intelligent discourse._

 ** _IScream4IceCream_** _: Meh, you'll be struggling to find that anywhere online. Like looking for a tiny nugget of gold deep within a mine in some frozen rectum of a cave in Atlas. Or a mute switch for Professor Port when he's rambling about some tale from his youth. Incidentally, there's already memes galore on the websites. A lot of it went out live on VNN, after all, until a stray bullet or twenty hit the cameras. I'll post links to the SFW sites shortly._

 ** _MissAnthropic_** _: Please do. I get bored easily, listening to my staff jockeying for my favour. When you've lived as long as I have, you need to find humour wherever you find it_.

Harry clicked on the links Neo posted. Some he cringed at. A few he snickered at, despite the fact that they were making light of a life or death situation.

Still, some of those messages concerned him. He knew UWantAFaceFullOfMace? was Cardin. He hadn't learned his lesson about mouthing off online. And given the language, he was almost certain that JusticeIsComing was Adam. He had called Blake 'darling' a lot during their confrontation.

Still, today could have gone a lot worse. And while Harry didn't like the fact that someone killed their captives, along with the guards escorting them, it still could have been worse.

The chatroom had devolved into bickering, and Harry had played his part. But still, maybe public opinion could be swayed. And maybe they had struck a PR blow against the White Fang…

 **CHAPTER 11 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **So, the villains are plotting, Qrow and Harry have met, and some** ** _Worm_** **-style or** ** _Homestuck_** **-style chatroom fun. Now, keep in mind, almost all of the chatroom usernames have canon characters behind them. Some will be obvious, but others, well…let's just say I had fun thinking of how certain characters would act online.**

 **Incidentally, if Adam seems OOC in his POV section, his injuries at Harry's hands and his inability to track down Blake has basically made him calm, at least outwardly. Inwardly, well, should he come across Blake or anyone she cares about…they're gone. Plus, once he gets a chance, he's going to end Cinder and Roman.**

 **Oh, before I get onto answering the reviews, I've posted the first chapters of a new** ** _RWBY_** **-related project…but not in** ** _The Cauldron_** **. No, this is not a Harry Potter crossover, though it was originally conceived as an AU to this work, albeit with Harry/Neo and Ilia/Emerald. Yes, you read that right. But after some correspondence with mellra, they allowed me to adapt the idea…with Schrödinger from** ** _Hellsing_** **instead of Harry. It's called** ** _RWBY: SINS_** **, and the trailers and the first chapter are available in** ** _Quatermass' Compost Heap_** **, starting here: s/12506513/25/Quatermass-Compost-Heap**

 **Review-answering time! A number of people didn't realise, but Neo is a triple agent within Torchwick and Cinder's conspiracy. They are well aware that she is a member of Atlas, but they think she has defected to them, as shown above. In truth, her loyalty is purely to Harry and her friends.**

 **Guest** **(regarding Nora's crash-tackle of Penny): Keep in mind that Weiss managed to knock Penny down in their very first meeting, wholly by accident. So Nora doing the same isn't out of the question, even without Nora's infamously boisterous nature. So yeah, Nora did manage to tackle Penny to the ground. I think Penny was bemused but enjoyed the attention. Penny may be less socially awkward in this story than in canon, but she is still eccentric.**

 **hnh058513** **: Yes, Raven's status in canon will be the same. Ozpin suspects it may be the case, but doesn't know for sure. He's more likely to consider the Spring Maiden he knew to be still alive, though.**

 **Leicontis** **: Good question. I'm guessing that, like the Dementors, it'd repel, but not kill, them.**

 **No numbered annotations this time.**


	13. Chapter 12: Discussions and Dementia

**CHAPTER 12:**

 **DISCUSSIONS AND DEMENTIA**

"D'you think it's wise letting Jimmy's little helpers know about this stuff, Oz?" Qrow asked as he sat opposite Ozpin in the headmaster's office, Glynda watching disapprovingly as Qrow toyed with the hipflask in his hands.

"James trusts them, Qrow. I told you about Talon's exploits, both against the White Fang and the SDC," Ozpin said. "James trusts them enough to tell them about both Amber and Salem. And without Neo's undercover work working under Roman Torchwick, we may not have gotten the extra leads."

"I still can't get over the fact that Jimmy let those kids become part of a special ops wing of Atlas. Still, I saw that Penny girl doing pretty well, both dealing with those White Fang idiots and protecting the security personnel. Hell, I didn't need to do much beyond finishing the fight. And you sent me that footage from their initiation. I'm impressed. But you know how I feel about Jimmy."

"Indeed. But given Amber's incapacitation, Jimmy felt that Talon's presence may deter her attackers from making another attempt. Instead of sending masses of military materiel, with all the fear and unease it could cause, he has sent us people he trusts, and people he thinks I can."

"Okay, I get that. Jimmy's actually thinking of preventing the Grimm from getting too frisky. Colour me impressed, he's not usually that restrained. But I'm worried, Oz. Worried that you may be trusting them too readily. Worried that they're too close to my nieces. Especially if this Neo girl's loyalties are no longer to Atlas or to us. Don't get me wrong, I'd sooner trust them over Jimmy, but…"

"I have to say, I do agree with your assessment," Glynda said. "Professor Ozpin, what if you're wrong?"

"Then I have invited disaster upon us all. But trust and unity is the greatest weapon against Salem and the Grimm," Ozpin said. "If James trusted them enough to tell them about Salem, then I do. And I should point out that, if my reading of the situation is correct, that Neo's loyalties are not to Atlas, or to us, or to Roman for that matter. It is to Harry Potter, personally. She wouldn't betray him, or her friends. And I am sure Harry's loyalties are not in question. He'd be more likely to be suspicious of me, but he'd focus on Salem. And he is also the sort of person, James told me, that I need to be frank with. He was lied to by his relatives about his parents' character and the manner of their death. Not to mention his powers."

"Yeah, this magic thing. Seriously, he has magic? Like, Maiden power?" Qrow asked.

"Not exactly. On his world, mages are born. Their power is weaker and less controllable than that of the Maidens, more prone to fluctuating with emotion and requiring a focus, but considerably more versatile. There used to be mages like that on Remnant, before Salem put paid to them. Aside from the Maidens, the closest we have to such abilities in modern times include both Semblances and Dust manipulation. By sending more mages to us, James is showing us more trust. The key question is, how to deal with any problems from the other kingdoms. Qrow, did you manage to find out anything about Leonardo's affairs?"

"Not much," Qrow admitted. "It's not like I could rock up to him and ask whether he's working for Salem. I did visit him to say hello, make some small talk, and left. He's nervous. I mean, he's always skittish, but…he's even more on edge than usual. I spoke to a couple of the students there, and, well, I heard something that was a little disturbing from one of them. Someone matching Hazel Rainart's description has visited Haven a couple of times."

"…Oh dear," Ozpin said, flinching at the memory of one of the most powerful fighters in the world, one who had a grudge against Ozpin thanks to his sister Gretchen dying in the field as a Huntress. During a training mission, no less. He'd heard rumours that Hazel had joined some mysterious, powerful backer, whom Ozpin thought to be Salem. "And Dr Watts?"

"They didn't mention him, and I didn't probe about it, in case any of it got back to Lionheart. As for Cinder, I've tried digging around for any information. There's nothing, beyond identity documents that could have been faked by a decent hacker. And Watts, as you know, is not just a disgraced biologist. He's an excellent software engineer and hacker."

"He learned from Dr Merlot(1)," Ozpin remarked. "In any case, I still need you outside of the Vale. You're too well known as my operative, and if Cinder and her followers are here, they may get nervous about you sniffing around. I have a few more missions for you, but there's a key one. Did you manage to get in touch with Raven?"

"Yeah. It went better than expected. She's still her usual self, but I told her what you told me: to keep from Salem anything she could use. She's agreed. That's probably the only thing we agree upon nowadays. Incidentally, she noticed Jimmy's kids. Apparently she was watching Yang when she went into Junior's club and met Talon."

"And she was using that chatroom earlier today under Nevermore," Ozpin observed. "Subtle. Did you manage to get anything out of her regarding the Spring Maiden?"

"Nothing verbal, but she's hiding something, I can tell. Actually, I'm glad Harry told Yang about Raven. That was a pretty fraught topic between Yang, Taiyang and I. I doubt it's stopped Yang from looking altogether, but she's at least thinking about it."

Ozpin nodded. "Good. While it's a pity that Raven won't cooperate with us beyond opposing Salem for her own reasons, I can understand her reluctance to work with me. It's her insistence on attacking those villages and leaving them easy prey to the Grimm I despise. But onto a different topic. James has revealed, thanks to the three adult mages who came to Remnant, that there is a magical ability that might be able to solve the Amber issue."

"What, like some sort of magical healing?" Qrow asked.

"Well, I intend to try that first," Ozpin said. "Professor Lupin and Mr Lovegood are both healers to some degree. But if that fails…I intend for them to use something called Legilimency."

"Legili-what now?"

Glynda cleared her throat. "Crudely put, it's a form of magical mind reading. Mr Lovegood is apparently a decent Legilimens. Professor Lupin is more of a dabbler, and only learned it because it was paired with Occlumency."

Ozpin nodded. "My reasoning is that someone entering Amber's mind may be able to restore it, and help her recover from her coma. Many Legilimens are also studiers of Occlumency, a form of mental protection as well as organising the mind. If the Legilimens is unable to restore Amber's mind enough that we can take her off life support…then maybe we can engineer things so that the remaining half of the Fall Maiden's power does not go to Cinder, that Amber's thoughts are of someone else, one of the candidates I have in mind. Also, we still don't know enough about Cinder and her two followers' abilities, which allowed them to subdue her. Legilimency may allow us to access her memories of the incident."

"All good points, even if I'm still uneasy about you trusting a bunch of strangers like this," Qrow said.

"They don't get much stranger than the Lovegoods, believe me…" Glynda muttered.

* * *

The most common thought going through most of the minds of Teams RWBY, JNPR, and HPIN was, _Oh dear merciless Oum, there are TWO of them_. Well, save for a few.

Penny Pollendina's mind was currently rebooting after crashing from the sheer insanity. Eccentric though she was, her processors were unable to process the sheer weirdness these two were producing just by close proximity. Meanwhile, the usually stoic Lie Ren was shooting nervous glances at the sky, looking for any signs that reality was collapsing in on itself, or that horrors from beyond known existence even the Grimm were afraid of were reaching through cracks in time and space to lay waste to Remnant. And had anyone known at that time that, deep in her dark fortress, Salem felt a faint thrill of apocalyptic uncertainty at a sense of chaos and insanity about to be unleashed, well, they would have believed it.

"…And that is how Nargles are born," Luna Lovegood said, the blonde, dotty-looking blonde the very picture of serenity, but not sanity.

Nora Valkyrie nodded enthusiastically. "It all makes so much SENSE! I've had so many things disappear, and I thought they were falling through cracks in the space-time continuum like all VWORP! VWORP(2)! Do you think these Nargles are dimension-jumping Grimm?"

"It's a theory that merits further investigation. As is your idea for pancakes fused with pudding," Luna decided.

"Is she always like this?!" Weiss hissed at Blake. Her teammate nodded resignedly, and Weiss put her face in her hands with a moan of despair.

"She has too many Wrackspurts," Luna mused. "So does Penny. Are you all right Penny?"

" _Warning: Divide by Cucumber Error. Please reinstall universe and reboot. MELON MELON MELON(_ _3)_ _!_ "

"She's fine," Luna said, as Ruby, trying to take her mind off the insanity, was gently poking a twitching Penny. "Ruby, if you want to purge the Wrackspurts from Penny, they're of a variety that can be purged by osculation."

"Uhh, wha?" Ruby asked coherently.

"Lip to lip contact," Luna explained patiently.

Ruby turned crimson with embarrassment. "Is she just messing with us?" Yang asked.

"You never actually know with Luna," Harry muttered.

Ruby, a little uncertain, nonetheless gently pressed her lips to Penny's own. The response was immediate. Penny convulsed briefly, and then said, "Sal-u-tations! Imprinting protocol activated! Designated master: Ruby Rose! How may I serve you?"

"UHH, WHAT?!" Ruby yelped.

"She doesn't have an imprinting protocol. Penny, stop joking around," Ilia groaned.

The gynoid pouted. "I've just been through a traumatising experience. Humour is one of the better treatments for dealing with trauma, so I have been told."

"Well, she's definitely a person," Jaune said. "I mean, she has a sense of humour. You can't be a person without a sense of humour."

"You haven't met Winter Schnee yet," Harry said. "Weiss here is a barrel of laughs compared to her."

"Hey! My sister has a very refined sense of humour!" Weiss retorted.

"Well, I guess if anyone knows, it'd be you or her boss. I've never seen it myself."

The drawling, slurred voice came from behind them, and they found Qrow Branwen walking up to them. "Uncle Qrow!" Ruby yelped.

"Hey, kids," Qrow said.

* * *

Qrow had something of a discussion with his nieces, with JNPR deciding to leave for the moment, Luna chatting merrily with Nora, and Weiss deciding to go elsewhere. Eventually, Qrow indicated for Team HPIN and Blake to come with him.

After they were a little way away from prying ears, Qrow muttered, "Why does it come to this shit? I thought it was bad when we were at Beacon. But between what happened to Amber and what we heard about people we thought were friends…oi, Harry. Do you trust Neo?"

"She is my sister. I trust her with my life."

Qrow emitted a bitter bark of laughter. "I felt the same way, once, about my sister. That didn't end well. We're barely on speaking terms."

"Yeah, but Qrow…you don't know what it was like. When I was eight, I was shoved into a cave by that fat bastard of a cousin of mine. And that was only the culmination of what my so-called loving relatives did to me. When I arrived on Remnant, I was promptly thrown into an orphanage, where I met Neo. The kids treated her like crap, Qrow. But I…I tried to be kind to her. I found her hair and eyes cool. They began targeting me as well. A few months after I arrived, we robbed the orphanage and escaped. We stowed away on a ship to Menagerie. Neo was the first person I ever trusted in my life. And vice versa. You say how you can't trust us personally? Rusty trusts you, in his own way. Oh, he despises your drunkenness and opinionated nature and your lack of decorum, but he still thinks of you as a skilled man, as devoted to stopping Salem as he is. And as we are."

"Wow. Didn't think Jimmy thought of me that highly. But you know what the stakes are here, then?"

"Being dominated, if not outright annihilated, by the Queen Bitch of the Grimm?" Ilia asked. "A woman, a thing, who delights in causing suffering and misery? Who would probably smile at the death of my parents, at the destruction White Fang and the SDC cause? Even if we can't put her down for good, we're going to make sure she stays down for a long time."

Neo then typed something into her Scroll, and then showed it to Qrow. _And if she bleeds, she can die. Science fact. Apropos of nothing, if I make you bleed, what proof would your blood be? 100 proof? 200? You could bottle it up and called it Crow Blood. I can see the ads now: Crow Blood! Guaranteed to wipe out 99.99% of brain cells and bacteria!_

"For a mute, you're a smartass," Qrow said.

 _That is but one of many parts of me that I am proud of, including my legs, my brain, the ability to shift my appearance at will, and my right hand. You'll never find a finer ice cream spoon-grasping appendage anywhere else. Plus, it holds my weapon, it allows me to type annoying messages to fray the sanity of mere mortals into my Scroll, and it allows me to speak sign language. I usually only need one finger for that, though_.

"No prizes for guessing which one." Qrow sighed. "Well, if you really are on the level, if Oz and Jimmy can trust you, can I ask you something? Especially you, Blake. Yang and Ruby…they don't know what's coming, and hopefully, they'll never have to. But protect them anyway."

"I'm their teammate," Blake said. "That is what I'm supposed to do. That is what I will do. That is what we all will do."

Ilia, Neo, Penny and Harry all nodded. "We're not here for the sake of Atlas, no matter what Rusty thinks, or Ozpin or Beacon. We're here for the sake of Remnant," Harry said solemnly. Then, after a moment, he shrugged, and said, "Ozpin's more fun to work with than Rusty anyway."

Qrow couldn't help but laugh. "Okay. Just remember what I said. Now…I want to hear any embarrassing anecdotes you may have about Jimmy or his pet ice queen. Care to share? Only, sharing is caring, I'm told."

Harry and the others got a vicious smirk on their features. Oh, where to begin?

 **CHAPTER 12 ANNOTATIONS:**

 **Where indeed?**

 **This'll probably be the last chapter for a while. My inspiration has run a little dry. We'll probably skip ahead either to the events of** ** _Forever Fall_** **, or** ** _The Stray_** **for the next one. Still, we had some Luna and Nora madness, and maybe a hint of Nuts and Dolts?**

 **Speaking of Nuts and Dolts: a quick EDIT has been made to give a message. I have just posted a challenge (NOT a full fic: this is for someone else to take up) on the forums of DZ2 and whitetigerwolf based loosely on a concept from _The Fifth Maiden_ by Inthretis, as well as what I used for _Neopolitan and the Goblet of Fire_. It's called _Scattered Pennys_.**

 **Review-answering time! Before we start, the guest who posted a long list of possible forum posters? They got virtually all of them right. For the ones that were unclear, FUWhiteFang was the only one I didn't have a clear canon character in mind for, though I had this odd notion after the fact it might be Whitley Schnee letting his hair down on the internet. Ashes2Ashes was Cinder, BlizzardBeauty was Weiss, Nevermore was Raven, and yes, MissAnthropic WAS Salem! Said guest drew a comparison to how the Simurgh has a PHO account in the** ** _Worm_** **fanfic** ** _Taylor Varga_** **, and while that wasn't consciously in mind when I did that, it was probably an unconscious reference. Incidentally, for any** ** _Worm_** **fans, I recommend** ** _Taylor Varga_** **. It's funny, awesome, and heartwarming in equal measure, and yes, it IS a** ** _Worm_** **fanfic that manages to be all of those things.**

 **VentXekart** **: Adam is wholly unaware of Ilia's love for Blake, but he still detests her, given that she is a Faunus working for the Atlesian military. To him, that is treachery of one of the darkest forms. If he knew of Blake's relationship with Ilia, he'd make sure to make Blake watch as he rapes and tortures Ilia.**

 **Harmonious Arkos Sloth** **: And not just as the Hulk: Yang was channelling a Dalek for a moment there (and if Grimm are attracted to negative emotions like hate, how long would a Dalek last on Remnant? My guess is, a surprisingly long time, but it'd be exterminating Grimm the whole time). And Harry does take them both on dates, both separately and together, though Blake is the focus of the threeway rather than Harry. They're all good friends anyway, and protective of one another.**

 **1\. AKA the villain of** ** _RWBY: Grimm Eclipse_** **. Given Merlot's obsession with the Grimm, and Watts' own morbid fascination with at least one, it's not a stretch to infer a connection.**

 **2\. Nora is using the onomatopoeia used for the TARDIS materialising or dematerialising in comics based on** ** _Doctor Who_** **.**

 **3\. Penny is quoting error messages Hex uses in the Discworld novels. Hex, if you don't know, is a magically-created computer.**


End file.
